The flash goes off like a gunshot.
Rina doesn’t hear it—she feels it. Sharp. Invasive. Slicing through the fragile bubble of quiet she and Jace carved out in the dark.
Jace hears it immediately.
His body goes rigid.
Another flash. Then another.
From the edge of the lawn. From behind a parked car. From someone who absolutely knows what they’re doing.
Rina’s stomach drops.
“Jace—” she starts.
He’s already moving.
His hand comes to her back, firm and instinctive, pulling her closer to his chest as he turns them both away from the light. His shoulder blocks her face, his body angled like a shield.
“Inside,” he murmurs. “Now.”
They don’t run. That would look guilty. They walk—controlled, deliberate—but the air crackles with danger. Every step feels watched.
The door closes behind th
