Dawn came gray and cold over the forest. Mist hung low between the trees, and the sound of the river was a dull roar somewhere behind them.
Adrian crouched by a half-burned log, coaxing a small fire from damp wood. The flames were weak, but they gave light, and that was enough. Elena sat a few feet away, wrapped in his jacket, watching the smoke spiral upward through the branches.
She hadn't slept. Every time her eyes closed, she saw flashes of the ambush: the muzzle fire, the faces, the rain streaking through the glow. And always Adrian's hand gripping hers, refusing to let go.
He looked up at her now, his expression softer than it had been in days. "You're shaking."
"I'm fine," she murmured. "Just cold."
He moved closer, draping an arm around her shoulders. The warmth of his body chased the chill, the steady rhythm of his breathing steadying hers. For a long time they sat without speaking, listening to the forest wake.
Finally Adrian broke the silence. "They'll regroup fast. We can't stay near the river."
Elena nodded. "Where do we go?"
"There's an old supply route north, used to be part of the syndicate's transport chain. If it's still clear, we can reach the city outskirts by nightfall."
She studied his face in the firelight. He looked tired, older somehow, but there was a calm in him that made her believe they could still win.
"Adrian," she said quietly, "what happens when we get there? We can't keep running forever."
He hesitated, staring into the fire. "Then we stop running. We go after them instead."
Elena's pulse quickened, not from fear, but from the fierce certainty in his voice. The man beside her wasn't just surviving anymore; he was planning. Fighting back.
She reached out, taking his hand. "Then we do it together."
He looked at her, a small smile breaking through the exhaustion. "Together," he agreed.
The forest around them was still dangerous, but for a few brief hours it felt almost peaceful. They ate what little food they had, dried their clothes by the fire, and mapped the route ahead in the dirt. Every so often, Adrian's hand brushed hers, a quiet reminder of the connection that had carried them through fire and flood.
By midday, they were ready to move. Adrian kicked dirt over the ashes of the fire, slung his pack over his shoulder, and glanced back at her.
"Ready?"
Elena tightened the straps of the borrowed jacket and met his gaze. "As I'll ever be."
They started north, the mist lifting as the sun rose higher. Somewhere behind them, the syndicate hunted. Somewhere ahead, the next battle waited.
But side by side, step for step, they walked out of the trees with a single purpose burning quietly between them:
They would stop running. And they would end this.
(Selene's Return).
The forest grew quieter as they moved north, every sound sharpened by exhaustion and hunger. The morning mist had thinned into ribbons of fog that clung to the trees, turning each shape into something half-seen, half-imagined.
Adrian stopped suddenly. "Wait."
Elena froze behind him, hand going instinctively to the small pistol at her side. "What is it?"
He scanned the tree line, eyes narrowing, posture tense. "Someone's here."
A soft click echoed, the sound of a safety being released. Then a woman's voice, calm and low, came from the shadows.
"Still listening before you look. You haven't changed."
Adrian turned, pulse spiking. From between the trees stepped Selene, black coat, dark hair pulled back, eyes sharp as glass. The morning light caught the silver scar at her temple, a reminder of the day everything between them burned.
Elena's breath caught. "Who...?"
"Selene," Adrian said quietly, his tone unreadable. "I thought you were dead."
She smiled, not kindly. "You almost made sure of it."
For a heartbeat, no one moved. The forest held its breath around them. Then Selene holstered her weapon and took a slow step forward.
"I've been tracking the same people hunting you," she said. "Your commander's gone rogue. He's tying up every loose end, including you."
Adrian studied her face, every muscle in his body coiled tight. "And I'm supposed to believe you came here to help?"
Her gaze softened, just barely. "I came because you once saved my life. Consider this the debt paid."
Elena stepped closer, tension flickering in her voice. "And what's the price after that?"
Selene's eyes shifted to her. "Smart question. He always did like women who think fast."
Adrian moved between them before the air could spark. "Enough."
For a moment, the three of them stood in a fragile triangle, past, present, and what could never quite be undone. Then Selene sighed, shoulders lowering.
"They'll reach this sector by nightfall. If you want to live, you'll follow me."
Adrian hesitated. He could hear the truth in her voice, the old rhythm of trust and betrayal that had once been their language.
Finally, he nodded once. "Lead the way."
Selene's lips curved, not in triumph, but something more complicated. "Still following me into trouble," she murmured. "Some things don't change."
As they moved through the forest, Elena walked a step behind them, eyes fixed on the woman who had just stepped out of Adrian's past. Every instinct told her to be wary. But another part, quieter, harder to admit, wanted to understand who this woman was, and why the sound of her voice made something in Adrian's chest tighten.
The sun was setting when Selene finally stopped at the edge of an abandoned lookout post. She turned, her gaze sweeping over them both.
"Rest here. We move at dawn."
Adrian met her eyes, the question unspoken: Can I trust you?
Selene's answer came in a whisper. "You'll have to."
The wind carried the scent of rain again. Three people, bound by history and danger, waited in silence for the next storm to break.