They rested for a moment in a dry brick alcove just yards away from the hotel's foundation wall.
Rohan sat on a stone step, rubbing his bandaged calf. The shadow-frost had left dark, spider-web veins on his skin, but his eyes were burning with a fierce light.
"Vikram," Rohan said quietly. "If we don't make it out of here... I want you to promise me something."
"We're both getting out, Ro," Vikram said, checking his knuckles.
"Just listen," Rohan insisted, grabbing Vikram's jacket. "My father... he believed in your father. He believed that the Rathods could actually change this city. I didn't believe it at first. I thought it was just old gangster stories."
He looked down at his blood-stained sleeve.
"But I see it now. I see what Malhotra is doing to our people. If I fall, you don't stop. You take Devendra down, even if you have to burn the whole Gateway plaza to do it."
Vikram stared at his friend, feeling the weight of the oath. He placed his hand over Rohan's.
"I won't stop, Rohan. I swear it on my father's name."
Rohan nodded, a small, grim smile appearing on his face. "Good. Now let's go break into a hotel."