Khanna POV
The booming demand from the other side of the door was deafening, amplified by the tiny, stifling space.
"Agency! We know you're in there! Come out now, or we'll force the door!"
I pressed my back against the boiler, the heat radiating through my jacket. Fear was a sharp, cold knot in my stomach, but the urgency of the moment—the sheer, tactical necessity of survival—overrode the panic. I looked at Hajime; he was pale but focused. Then I looked at Jake. He was the key, the unknown factor, and he was dangerously calm.
“They’re not waiting for an answer,” I hissed, my eyes scanning the thin metal door. The distinct sound of a breaching charge being set was unmistakable. "Hajime, you have thirty seconds. Find something, anything, to distract them when that charge blows."
Hajim
