Page 5 of Princess of Vengeance

She grits her teeth against the pain as I help lower her through the opening. I’m trying to be gentle even though there’s no time for it. Nico catches her from below, steadying her as she lands in knee-deep water.

Killian drops through next and ducks out of the way, motioning for me to follow. “Come on, Atlas—move your ass!”

I’m halfway through the opening when the first shots ring out. Bullets spark off the metal grate above my head and ping against the stone walls. One comes so close I swear I can feel it part my hair before I let myself drop.

I land hard in the filthy water, splashing backwards as more bullets fire through the opening we just escaped through. But we’re already moving, helping Quinn through the darkness and getting the fuck out of their line of fire.

3

QUINN

More bullets slaminto the concrete behind us, leaving no doubt that we’re still only a few seconds ahead of the Dark Lotus Syndicate members’ guards. I duck lower, sloshing through raw fucking sewage while Nico and Atlas drag me forward. My chest is on fire and my shirt is soaked with my own blood, making it cling to my skin every time I try to breathe.

Behind us, Killian fires twice. “Keep fucking moving!”

His shout bounces off the walls, nearly drowned out by the gunshots and footsteps gaining on us.

I don’t know how we aren’t dead yet. We should be bleeding out on Malcolm’s floor right now. The fact that we made it this far is pure dumb fucking luck.

A bullet whizzes past my head and I instinctively jerk away. Atlas yanks me around a corner, making my side scream where Elliot stuck his knife in me. But fuck the pain. I’ve handled worse. Right now, I just need to stay on my feet.

“Left,” Nico says through gritted teeth, his fingers digging into my arm as we splash through the shallow water. “There’s gotta be a way out somewhere?—”

My boot slips on something, and my knee gives out. For a second, I’m sure I’m going down, but Atlas doesn’t let me fall.The sudden movement sends a spike of pain through my torso where Imogen and Elliot stabbed me, but I push that shit aside like I always do. I can deal with it later.

Right now, we run or we die.

The tunnels branch off in every direction, which is the only thing keeping us alive right now. At least we’ve got options, unlike that death trap of a hallway in the bowels of Noctura.

“Another right,” Nico whispers, pulling me toward a smaller tunnel. Every step sends pain shooting through my body, but the sound of shouting behind us is more than enough to keep me moving.

“Wait.” Killian’s voice drops low as he gestures to a dark offshoot tunnel ahead. “In there. Now.”

We duck into the tunnel just as voices seem to echo from all around us. My heart is pounding so hard I swear they’ll hear it, but I don’t dare say a word as we press ourselves tight against the slimy concrete walls.

“Don’t move,” Atlas breathes against my ear.

His arm is still around my waist helping hold me up, and I’m not even a little bit ashamed that I’m using his strength to my full advantage, leaning into him as much as I can. The wound Imogen gave me isn’t serious—relatively speaking, anyway—but the one from Elliot has taken a lot out of me, and I’m losing more blood with each passing minute. Still, I know I have to stay quiet in spite of the pain that’s making each breath feel like I’m being stabbed all over again.

“They couldn’t have gotten far,” a voice carries down the main tunnel. “Split up and find them.”

“Fuck that,” another voice answers. “You want to chase them through this shit? Let them bleed out down here.”

Nico’s hand finds mine in the darkness, squeezing once. A reminder to stay still. As if I need it. My only hope right now isthat maybe if I hold perfectly still, the pain will stop trying to tear me apart.

Footsteps splash through the water, getting closer. I feel all three men tense around me, ready to fight if we’re found. The steps pause right at the junction of our tunnel, and my fingers dig into Nico’s hand.

“There’s nothing this way,” the guard calls out after what feels like forever. “Check the north tunnels.”

We wait in silence as the footsteps fade away, none of us willing to move until we’re sure they’re gone. Finally, Killian lets out a breath.

“Fucking amateur hour,” he mutters. “They should have checked every tunnel.”

“Don’t complain about their fuck-up,” Atlas snorts. “It’s the only reason we’re still breathing.”

The shakes hit me out of nowhere, making my whole body tremble like I’m coming down from the world’s worst high. My teeth start chattering so hard I have to clench my jaw to keep them quiet.

“Fuck,” Atlas mutters, pulling me tighter against his chest. “She’s going into shock.”

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