blood and war.

escape from death

Chapter 6: Escape From Death

The lights flickered back on. Bones was gone.

"Did you see—" Rico started.

"I saw." Jayce swept the train car with his weapon. Empty except for an old man sleeping at the far end and two teenagers with headphones. None of them were Bones.

"He was right there," Rico insisted.

"I know." Jayce moved quickly to where Bones had been standing. Nothing. No sign anyone had been there. He checked the connecting door between cars. Locked from the other side.

Maya groaned, eyes fluttering. Blood still seeped through the makeshift bandage.

"She needs a hospital," Rico said.

"Hospital means cops. Cops means Grim finds us in an hour." Jayce pressed harder on Maya's wound. The bleeding was slowing but her skin was cold, clammy. Shock setting in. "We go to that server farm she mentioned. Northeast side."

"The one Bones texted you about?"

"You got a better idea?"

Rico had no answer.

The train screeched to a halt. Doors opened. Different station, deeper underground. The platform was nearly empty. Jayce hauled Maya up, her arm across his shoulders. Rico took her other side. They moved fast, blending with the few other passengers.

Up the stairs. Out onto the street. The northeast industrial district spread before them—abandoned factories, empty lots, rusted chain-link fences. Nothing lived here except rats and junkies.

"Which way?" Rico asked.

Jayce pulled out his phone, checked the map. "Six blocks north. The old DataCore building."

They moved through shadows, avoiding streetlights. Every sound made Jayce's finger tighten on his trigger. Cars in the distance. A dog barking. Wind through broken windows.

Maya's head lolled against his shoulder. "Jayce..."

"Save your strength."

"No. Listen." Her voice was barely a whisper. "Chen. She's dirty. Don't trust—"

"I don't trust anyone right now."

"Smart." She coughed, winced. "The wound on my back. Grim's man shot me. Two days ago. When I stole the real drive. Chen patched me up. Said she'd protect me if I... if I helped her build a case."

"Against Grim?"

"Against everyone. She's playing both sides. Wants to take down the whole network and ride it to captain." Maya's breathing was getting worse. "I gave her fake information. But she doesn't know that. When she finds out..."

"She'll come for you."

"For all of us."

They reached the DataCore building. Seven stories of crumbling concrete and broken windows. The front entrance was chained shut but someone had cut through the fence on the east side.

"This screams trap," Rico muttered.

"Everything screams trap." Jayce pushed through the gap in the fence. "Stay sharp."

Inside, the building was a maze of stripped server rooms and torn-out wiring. Graffiti covered the walls. Empty needles littered the floor. The smell of piss and decay was overwhelming.

"We're exposed here," Rico said, checking corners with his weapon. "No exits, no cover."

"Maya said basement level. Emergency exit."

They found stairs leading down. The darkness was absolute. Jayce used his phone's flashlight to navigate. The beam cut through dust and spider webs. At the bottom, a heavy door with a faded radiation warning sign.

Rico tried the handle. Locked. "Now what?"

Jayce kicked it. The door held. He kicked again. Nothing.

"Move." Rico stepped back, then slammed his shoulder into it. The door groaned but didn't give. He hit it again. And again. On the fourth impact, the lock broke. The door swung inward.

Beyond was a tunnel. Concrete walls, flickering emergency lights that somehow still had power. It stretched into darkness.

"This doesn't feel right," Rico said.

"Nothing feels right." Jayce adjusted Maya's weight. She was barely conscious now. "But we're out of options."

They entered the tunnel.

It ran for what felt like miles but was probably only a few hundred yards. Their footsteps echoed. Water dripped somewhere. The emergency lights cast everything in sick green.

Then they heard it. Behind them. Footsteps.

Multiple sets.

"Run!" Jayce broke into a sprint, half-carrying Maya. Rico ran beside him, weapon pointed backward.

The footsteps got louder. Closer. Voices shouted commands.

"There! I see them!"

Gunfire erupted. Bullets sparked off the concrete walls. Jayce kept running, lungs burning. Ahead, the tunnel split into three directions.

"Which way?" Rico shouted.

"Left!" Jayce made the choice randomly. They veered left. The tunnel narrowed, forcing them single-file. More gunshots. A bullet grazed Jayce's shoulder, tearing fabric. Pain flared but he didn't slow.

The tunnel opened into a larger chamber. Some kind of old maintenance hub. Rusted pipes ran along the ceiling. A metal ladder led up to a sealed hatch.

"Dead end!" Rico spun, weapon raised.

Six men poured into the chamber. Tactical gear. Military-grade weapons. But not Grim's people. These wore police body armor.

The lead man lowered his rifle slightly. "Jayce Carter. Drop your weapons and get on the ground."

"Who are you?"

"Detective Chen's task force. You're under arrest for robbery, assault, and attempted murder."

"We didn't murder anyone."

"Grim Holloway's lieutenant died an hour ago. Complications from injuries sustained during your warehouse raid." The detective gestured with his rifle. "Last chance. Drop the weapons."

Jayce looked at Rico. Rico's eyes asked the question: Do we fight?

Six armed cops in body armor. Two exhausted criminals with barely any ammunition. Maya bleeding out between them.

The math didn't work.

Jayce lowered his gun.

"Smart choice." The detective stepped forward. "Kick them over here. Slowly."

Jayce kicked his pistol across the floor. Rico did the same. The cops moved in, zip-ties ready.

That's when Maya opened her eyes.

"Now," she whispered.

The emergency lights went out.

Complete darkness. Shouting. Flashlight beams cutting randomly through the black. Jayce felt Maya press something into his hand—a small remote.

He pressed the button.

Explosions rocked the chamber. Not big ones. Flashbangs. Blinding light and deafening sound. The cops screamed, disoriented. Jayce grabbed Maya and ran. Rico was already moving toward where he remembered the entrance being.

They crashed through bodies. Someone grabbed Jayce's jacket. He ripped free. Gunfire erupted but the shots went wild, hitting walls and pipes. Water sprayed from a ruptured line.

Then they were back in the tunnel, running blind. Maya's hand on Jayce's shoulder, guiding him. "Right. Twenty steps. Then left."

She'd memorized the layout. Even half-conscious, bleeding, she'd been planning.

They followed her instructions. Right. Twenty steps. Left. Another tunnel. Up stairs. Through a door. Suddenly they were in a different building. Residential. Abandoned apartments.

Behind them, the cops were still shouting. Still disoriented.

"Window. Third floor. Fire escape," Maya gasped.

They climbed. Every floor made Jayce's legs scream. Maya was dead weight now. Rico took her from him on the second landing. They burst into a third-floor apartment—squatter's den, empty except for trash and a stained mattress.

The window was already open. The fire escape beyond looked rusted but functional.

Rico went first, testing the metal. It groaned but held. Jayce handed Maya down to him, then climbed out himself. They descended into an alley. Different neighborhood. The industrial zone was behind them now. Residential blocks stretched ahead.

A car screeched around the corner.

Not a police car. Black sedan. Windows tinted. It skidded to a stop in front of them. The back door opened.

"Get in!" A woman's voice.

Jayce raised his fists, ready to fight bare-handed if needed.

The woman leaned out. Middle-aged, Asian, hard eyes and a badge on her belt. Detective Chen.

"I said get in. You've got thirty seconds before my task force gets here and I have to arrest you for real."

"Why would you help us?" Jayce demanded.

"Because I need Maya alive and I need you functional. We'll talk later. Now move!"

Rico looked at Jayce. Jayce looked at Maya. She nodded weakly.

They got in the car.

Chen drove like a demon, weaving through traffic, running red lights. In the backseat, Jayce kept pressure on Maya's wounds. Both of them. The old one on her back had reopened.

"Where are we going?" Rico asked from the front seat.

"Safe house. Real one. Not some abandoned warehouse bullshit." Chen glanced in the rearview mirror. "Maya's been feeding me intelligence on Grim for six months. She's my best asset. I'm not letting her bleed out."

"She said you were playing both sides."

"She's paranoid. Comes with the territory." Chen took a sharp turn. "I'm organized crime division. I've been building a case against Grim Holloway for three years. Maya gave me what I needed to move forward. Then you showed up and complicated everything."

"How?"

"Because Grim's not the top of the food chain. He answers to someone. And that someone just put a million-dollar bounty on your head."

The car went silent except for the engine and Maya's labored breathing.

"Who?" Jayce finally asked.

"I don't know yet. But they've got serious reach. Half my department is compromised. I'm running this operation with three cops I trust and a prayer."

They pulled into an underground parking garage. Chen killed the engine, got out, and helped Rico carry Maya toward a service elevator. Jayce followed, every instinct screaming this was wrong.

The elevator rose. Tenth floor. Chen led them down a hallway to apartment 1047. She unlocked three different locks and pushed the door open.

Inside was a fully equipped medical station. Hospital bed. IV stands. Monitoring equipment. A young woman in scrubs stood waiting.

"Gunshot wound. Two of them. One fresh, one day old," Chen said efficiently. "Get her stable."

The medic and Rico lifted Maya onto the bed. She went to work immediately—cutting away Maya's bloody shirt, cleaning wounds, starting an IV.

Chen turned to Jayce. "Bathroom's down the hall. Clean yourself up. We need to talk."

"About what?"

"About why Bones didn't betray you."

Jayce froze. "What?"

"Bones has been my undercover asset inside Grim's organization for eight months. Everything he did tonight—taking Grim's money, switching the drives, disappearing on that train—was part of the operation."

"That's impossible. He—"

"He saved your life." Chen pulled out her phone, showed him a photo. Bones in a police interrogation room. Another photo. Bones shaking hands with Chen, both of them smiling. "He's Detective Marcus Holloway. Yes, Grim's nephew. Yes, he hates his uncle. No, he wasn't going to let you die."

Jayce's mind reeled. "The text. The one that told us about this place. That was him?"

"He's been trying to keep you alive without blowing his cover. Not easy when you're starting wars you can't win."

"Then why the performance on the train?"

"Because Grim's people were following you. Had to make it look like he was loyal. Had to separate from you convincingly." Chen pocketed her phone. "He's back with Grim now. Reporting that he lost you in the subway. Buying us time."

Rico emerged from the medical area. "She's stable. Needs blood. Medic says she'll live if we can keep her safe for twenty-four hours."

Chen nodded. "She'll be safe here. You two, on the other hand, have a problem."

"Just one?" Jayce asked bitterly.

"The bounty. One million cash for whoever brings you in. Grim's got every crew in the city looking. You can't go anywhere without being recognized."

"So what do you want from us?"

Chen smiled. It wasn't warm. "I want you to do what you do best. I want you to be bait. You walk around, draw out Grim's people, and my team takes them down. We keep doing that until we trace the money back to whoever's really running things."

"You want us to be targets."

"You're already targets. I'm just giving you backup."

Jayce looked at Rico. Rico shrugged. "We're not exactly swimming in options."

The medic called out. "Detective. You should see this."

They crowded around the hospital bed. Maya was unconscious, hooked to machines. The medic pointed to something on the small wound on Maya's back.

"This isn't a gunshot," she said. "It's an injection site. Recent. And there's something under the skin."

Chen leaned closer. "Something like what?"

"Like a tracker. Same kind we use on parolees. Subcutaneous. Broadcasting constantly." The medic looked up. "Someone's been following her every move for at least forty-eight hours."

The room went cold.

"Grim knew where we were going," Jayce said slowly. "The whole time. Even when we thought we lost him."

"Not just Grim." Chen pulled out a scanning device, ran it over Maya's back. The device beeped, showed a frequency. "This is military-grade. Not something street dealers have access to."

"Then who?"

Chen's phone rang. She answered. Listened. Her face went pale. She hung up.

"My task force just found Bones. His body. Dumped in the river. Throat cut. Message carved into his chest."

"What message?" Rico asked quietly.

Chen's voice was barely a whisper. "Stop looking or you're next."

The same message they'd seen on Bones' body before. Except Bones had been alive then. Undercover. Protected.

Now he was dead.

Which meant the Bones in the motel room hadn't been the real Bones at all.

Jayce's phone buzzed. He pulled it out with shaking hands.

Unknown number. Video message. He pressed play.

The screen showed a dark room. A figure tied to a chair. As the camera moved closer, the figure's face became clear.

Maya.

Not the Maya lying unconscious on the bed behind them.

A different Maya. Hair shorter. Different clothes. But the same face. Same voice when she spoke.

"Help me. Please. They're going to kill—"

The video cut off.

Jayce turned slowly to look at the Maya on the bed. Peaceful. Breathing steadily.

He looked at Chen. At Rico. At the medic.

"Who the hell is that?" he whispered, pointing at the bed.

Chen raised her weapon, aimed it at the sleeping woman. "I don't know. But that's not Maya Reeves."

The woman's eyes snapped open. She smiled.

"Took you long enough," she said in a voice that wasn't Maya's.

Then the apartment exploded into gunfire.