<h4>Chapter 123: Keep going</h4>


    The heavy door finally creaked open with a mechanical groan that echoed through the walls, and Marlowe stepped inside. Her entrance was met with a wave of relief that passed between Serena and Lucian like a sudden gust of wind clearing dense fog.


    She was dressed in the typical white coat and dark cks of one of the council’sboratory specialists, her face partly obscured by a medical mask. Yet, despite the disguise, Serena recognized her immediately.


    "Marlowe!" Serena eximed, her voice trembling with a strange mixture of disbelief and gratitude.


    Completely forgetting about Salvador, Serena stood up abruptly, her bnce slightly unsteady from exhaustion and lingering disorientation. She rushed toward Marlowe and threw her arms around her. She couldn’t exin how grateful she was to see the woman at that point. She wasn’t sure how Marlowe made it through, but she believed with the woman’s presence their escape was sure.


    Marlowe caught her and hugged her briefly but tightly, as if affirming that Serena was truly there in her arms.


    "Oh, thank goodness. I finally found you," Marlowe said, her voice hushed but sincere. She pulled back quickly, her eyes scanning the room warily before settling on Lucian.


    "We have to go," she added, already looking toward the hallway beyond the door.


    Lucian, still tense but obviously in agreement, gave a single nod. He dropped the sheet, which he had intended to use to tie Salvador, and stepped forward. But they barely made it to the door before the calm was shattered.


    Without warning, Salvador lunged forward with a snarl, his body moving with sudden, unnatural speed. He threw himself toward Serena and grabbed her by the legs, yanking them out from under her. Serena cried out as her body tilted backward, but Lucian was quick to act. He lunged forward and caught her head just before it could hit the hard floor.


    "Serena!" Lucian shouted, holding her up with one arm as she struggled in Salvador’s grasp.


    But Salvador was already ahead of them. He dragged Serena toward him, his grip unrelenting. Then, almost too fast for Lucian and Marlowe to process, he sped a metal band around Serena’s ankle. A second device, small and palm-sized, was activated in his other hand.


    The moment the device came to life, Serena arched her back and screamed. Her hands flew to her head as she wed at her skull like she was trying to peel something out. Her shrieks were sharp and agonized, echoing off the sterileboratory walls.


    Lucian froze in rm. "What the hell are you doing to her?" he asked Salvador but his eyes quickly moved back to Serena as his confusion about what was going on with her heightened.


    In the chaos, Salvador saw his chance. With the control device still gripped tightly in his hand and a glint of something unhinged in his eyes, he turned and bolted out of the room. He didn’t look back, only sprinted down the hallway as fast as his legs would carry him, vanishing from sight.


    Lucian wanted to follow him. Every muscle in his body was screaming to chase Salvador down and tear him apart. But one look at Serena, writhing on the floor in sheer torment, made the choice for him. He dropped to his knees beside her.


    Marlowe dropped to her knees too, stunned, her eyes fixed on the device now glowing faintly around Serena’s ankle. "I think he’s trying to activate her memories." she shouted above the screaming. "We need to take that thing off her leg fast before she bes two people in one!"


    "Stay with me," Lucian whispered fiercely, brushing her hair from her soaked forehead. "How do I take it off?"


    Marlowe examined the device. "There’s no lock," she muttered. "No obvious switch either."


    Lucian’s eyes narrowed as he studied the mechanism. The device had three small hooked sps, each securing the band to her ankle. He realized that if he unsped one and let go, it would snap back into ce. It meant he would have to hold all three hooks open at the same time to remove it.


    "Hold her still," Lucianmanded.


    Marlowe nodded and gently pressed down on Serena’s arms to keep her from thrashing. Serena’s screams hadn’t lessened. If anything, they had grown louder, more guttural.


    Lucian worked quickly but carefully, his fingers trembling slightly with urgency. He opened one hook and held it with his thumb, then another, wedging the second hook open with the edge of his palm. The third was the trickiest. He used his free fingers to pry it loose.


    As soon as the final sp snapped open, the device slipped off Serena’s ankle and ttered to the floor. The glowing light it emitted flickered once and died instantly.


    Serena gasped and fell limp in his arms, her screaming cut off as if someone had pressed a mute button. Her breathing came in shallow bursts, and her eyes were wide with confusion.


    Lucian gently pulled her upright, supporting her weight. "Serena... talk to me. Are you alright?"


    She blinked rapidly, then shook her head as if trying to clear fog from her mind. "I—I think so," she said softly, her voice hoarse. "But I... I saw something. I was somewhere else. Another ce... or another time."


    Lucian and Marlowe exchanged a tense look.


    "One moment I was here," Serena continued, her tone trembling, "then I was in this... world I didn’t recognize. But it felt familiar. I could feel everything like it was happening to me all over again. I felt what she—what I—felt."


    She didn’t understand it I didn’t know how to exin it perfectly. But the moment that device was activated, she was transported into another world and another time where she lived a different life. Even most strange was the fact that she felt everything as if it was real and happening in the moment.


    "You’re back now," Lucian said, pulling her close. "We’re getting out of here."


    Marlowe stood up quickly, her urgency returning. "We need to move now. Before the rest of the building wakes up to the chaos. Bonnie’s got all the authorities fixated on this building right now. We’re running out of time."


    Lucian nodded and took Serena’s hand firmly in his. Together, the three of them moved in a running pace toward the exit.


    "We’ll take the underground tunnel," Marlowe exined as she led the way. "Adrian and Darrell are waiting in my car at the other end. Everything’s in ce."


    Their footsteps echoed as they descended a narrow flight of stairs that led to the tunnel entrance. The path ahead was dimly lit and lined with pipes and steel reinforcements, giving it a ustrophobic feel.


    They pressed forward in silence, every breath tight with anticipation. Just when they thought they were nearing the tunnel’s midpoint, a figure appeared ahead of them.


    Salvador.


    He stood a few feet away, illuminated by the flickering light above him. In his hand was a ck pistol, and he had it aimed directly at them. A wild, gleeful smile stretched across his face.


    "Going somewhere?" he asked, his voice thick with malice. "Certainly not with my wife. Give her back."


    The trio stopped instantly.


    "Walk toward me, sweetheart," Salvador ordered. "Nice and slow."


    Lucian’s eyes flicked around the tunnel, searching for a new exit. Marlowe did the same. Without speaking, they turned and bolted in the opposite direction.


    The crack of gunfire exploded behind them. The first shot missed. The second ricocheted off a pipe. But the third struck true.


    Marlowe let out a sharp cry as the bullet tore into her back. She stumbled and copsed to the ground.


    "Marlowe!" Serena screamed, skidding to a stop.


    "Keep running!" Marlowe shouted through clenched teeth. "Keep going. Don’t stop!"


    "Shit!" Lucian turned back without hesitation.


    He ran to her side, crouched, and carefully lifted her onto his back. Marlowe clung weakly to him, her face contorted in pain.


    "Go," she whispered. "Don’t stop."


    With Serena right beside him, Lucian carried Marlowe through the final stretch of the tunnel. They burst through the far end into a shadowed corridor where a ck vehicle waited, engine humming low.


    Adrian stood beside it, gun drawn. Darrell was in the driver’s seat, already revving the engine.


    "We’re clear!" Adrian called, ushering them forward.


    Bonnie’s men had done their job. Every guard, every security personnel in the area had been neutralized or diverted. There were no more shots. No more rms. Just the growl of the engine and the fading scent of gunpowder in the air.


    Lucian ced Marlowe gently in the backseat, Serena climbing in beside her. He mmed the door shut just as Adrian slid in next to Darrell.


    "Drive," Lucian ordered.


    The car peeled away from the council building, leaving behind the cold walls, the betrayals, and the chaos. As they sped down the empty road, Serena set her teary gaze on Marlowe, who was fighting to stay conscious.


    "You’re going to be okay," she whispered, gripping the woman’s cold hand.


    But Marlowe could barely hear her. She was quickly losing blood and the fight to stay alive.