Shore.Real, solid land. So close the wind carried the smell of sand and smoke from distant cookfires.Gig exhaled sharply, laughing in disbelief. “We made it… we actually—Sink, we made it! We made it!”“I could kiss the ground!” Sink choked out, eyes wide with tearful relief. “I swear I’ll never complain again—just get us there—NOW!”Sink slammed the throttle, and the boat shot forward.The moment its hull scraped sand, the two men didn’t even wait for it to fully stop. They leapt out immediately.Sink grabbed Evan, who was still unconscious, slung him over his back, and began sprinting. Though they were being chased by Sean, they still needed their money bag; after all, they had taken him that far already.Gig clutched his injured shoulder, stumbling after him. “Move, move, MOVE!”They dashed across the sand, panting, terrified Sean might explode out of the water behind them any second.At the edge of the beach, they spotted a small sand buggy parked near a surf shack. It was a ma

They didn’t move and couldn’t even breathe since they were so petrified about who was standing there.Not even a whisper left their mouths.Sink lifted a hand slowly, signaling silence.“Quiet,” he muttered. “It might be Sean.”Gig scoffed under his breath. “I’m not scared.”But both of their hearts thudded hard, loud enough that it felt like the room could hear it.Then a voice came from outside.“Room service! Do you still need the order?”It was a woman’s voice and not a male one.Gig blinked. “Oh… that’s mine.”Sink snapped his head toward him. “Yours?!”Gig nodded slowly. “Yeah… I asked for food.”“When?” Sink demanded.Gig hesitated. “Uh… when you were arguing with the receptionist. You said Evan was just drunk, remember? That time.”Sink’s face darkened. He had been the one dealing with the receptionist who kept asking why they were bringing an unconscious person into a hotel room. And no matter how they tried to explain, it still looked suspicious.It had taken a while for Si

The men Sean had just beaten were frozen in shock, too stunned to even speak. Their faces were pale, and their breaths came in shallow, ragged gasps.Sean stood over them, calm and unbothered, eyes scanning each one like he was assessing minor pests.He tilted his head slightly, voice low and steady. “Aren’t you going to leave?”The words seemed to snap them out of their daze. They flinched, exchanging quick, panicked glances.Almost simultaneously, they scrambled to their feet, helping each other as they backed toward the door.“We’ll make you regret this!” one of them shouted, his voice cracking. “You’ll pay for this! You’ll regret it, man!”Sean didn’t even flinch. He watched them retreat, their footsteps clattering on the floor as they fled the café.He ignored their threats entirely, as if they were nothing more than background noise.The café owner and the worker, still crouched near the counter, finally found their courage.They rushed over to Sean, gratitude plain on their fac

Sean walked calmly toward the hotel, his steps calm, and he glanced around the place, in case Sink and Gig had decided to leave the hotel.Though the phone was still with him, so he was able to see the surveillance on that side with it, he had chosen to use his eyes instead.The street around him was quiet, and it was already slightly dark, darker than it had been before.The only light source was the moon and the dim glow of streetlight, casting long shadows on the pavement.He had no intention of blending in, no intention of hiding, since he didn’t need to.As he neared the front entrance, something small and dark suddenly hurtled toward his head.Reflexes sharp as ever, he ducked just in time, and the object slammed into the ground with a loud crack, scattering across the pavement.He crouched for a moment, eyes narrowing, and reached down to pick up the fallen item. It was a phone, dented but still intact.His eyes flicked to the screen, the messages still faintly visible, and a s

Sink joined in, a mixture of disbelief and relief flooding through him, and the two high-fived, laughing like idiots who had just cheated death.Gig leaned back against the seat, letting out a long, shaky breath. “If I’d known the helicopter was here, I would’ve told you to take me straight here, Sink! Could’ve saved half our sprint!”Sink grinned, shaking his head. “Better late than never, right? Let’s just get out of this city before he finds another way to ruin our night.”Nodding, Gig closed his eyes, inhaling deeply, then exhaling slowly.He tried to convince himself that they were finally safe, that Sean was gone for good. But the image of Sean leaping from the top floor, landing with impossible precision, still flickered in his mind.‘Could he really be dead? Or had he managed to grab it before it left the ground? Or did he grab it and lose his grip and land on the floor?’The thought gnawed at him, refusing to be silenced.He opened his eyes again, glancing at Sink. The serio