The tunnel sloped upward.
Barely at first, then more sharply as the concrete under our feet shifted from cold and slick to something drier, dustier—closer to the surface.
Kol grunted behind me as he and Mick strained under the weight of the last crate. "Not far now."
"How do you know?" Mick gasped.
"I've walked half of these before."
"I thought you said you weren't sure where it led—"
"I said it was a gamble," Kol shot back. "And we're still alive, aren't we?"
I didn't chime in.
Not because I agreed or disagreed—just because all my focus was on what waited above. Each step upward felt like it came with a warning baked into the air. Too still. Too quiet. The scent of mold gave way to dry soil and a faint sharpness—like sun hitting rust.
We're close, Nyx said. Too close to relax.
She wasn't wrong.
We were alive, yes. But not safe. Not yet.
And time was slipping away.
The tunnel opened into a storage lot just outside Sector D—just like Kol had predicted.
A grated steel hatch lay half-hidden beneath a stack of rotting pallets and overgrown weeds. Tiger pushed it open from below, letting in a shaft of dusty light. The air outside was stale but fresh compared to the recycled dampness we'd been breathing for the last hour.
Mick scrambled out first, gasping like he'd been underwater.
Kol and I followed, hauling the white crate between us with the last of our strength. It scraped the lip of the tunnel, caught once, then slid free with a metallic thunk.
We were out.
Alive.
Whole.
And still on the clock.
Tiger was already scouting the area. "No eyes. No drones. It's dead out here."
"Good," Kol said, wiping sweat from his forehead. "Because we've got ten minutes left to make the drop."
The new delivery vehicle was parked right where it was supposed to be—unmarked, matte grey, already running.
A courier stood by the open rear doors, checking something on a datapad.
He looked up when we approached, expression unreadable. "Cutting it close."
Tiger snorted. "You're lucky we showed up at all."
"Cargo?"
Kol gestured behind us. "Intact. Crates ready."
The man stepped forward to inspect the white crate as we slid it into the back.
For one horrible moment, I thought he might open it.
Nyx bristled.
Let him. I dare him.
But the courier only tapped a code into the side panel, waited for the confirmation light to blink green, then closed the doors with a soft click.
"All received. Confirmation will upload automatically once we hit the edge of the relay zone."
"And the reward?" Mick asked, a little too breathless.
"You'll get it."
No names. No pleasantries. No handshake.
Just a van pulling away from a quiet loading zone.
And then silence.
We stood there for a few seconds after it was gone.
Watching the dust rise behind it.
Kol broke it first, sagging back against a cracked wall. "Job's done."
Tiger lit a cigarette with shaking fingers. "Never again."
Mick collapsed onto an overturned crate, wiping his face with the inside of his elbow.
I didn't move.
Couldn't.
The rush of motion had slowed now. The tension that had kept me focused was bleeding out, replaced by a pressure that had nothing to do with the job.
My thoughts had already left the yard.
Already flown down the road, across the city, through steel walls and marble floors—
Back to Nine.
His room.
His voice.
His hands on mine.
His trembling smile.
He's waiting.
Nyx's voice was tight in my chest now.
He's alone.
I took a deep breath.
Then another.
Then I started walking.
No one stopped me this time.
And I didn't look back.