The silence was the worst part.
Above us, boots pounded across broken stone.
Dogs barked.
Voices overlapped.
Every sound seeped through the ancient rock until the catacombs seemed alive, carrying the hunt beneath the mountain.
They weren't searching anymore.
They were closing a net.
I switched off the flashlight.
Darkness swallowed us whole.
For several seconds, neither of us moved.
Neither of us breathed.
Somewhere overhead, stone scraped against stone.
A command echoed through the ruins.
Closer.
Too close.
Then—
A ragged breath broke the silence behind me.
I froze.
Not because I didn't recognize it.
Because I did.
Damien.
His breathing had changed.
Gone was the steady rhythm of the man who had walked through sniper fire without hesitation.
Every inhale caught.
Eve
