Adam, who'd already been a little irritated by one of the newly met survivors, snapped his eyes to Leon the moment he heard the word "leeches."
His jaw tightened visibly. A flash of protest lit in his gaze.
He was already opening his mouth to say something - probably something impulsive, something that would only stoke the tension - when he felt a light pressure on his forearm.
Natalia.
She stopped him with a single touch, without even looking at him.
"Not now," she said quietly, and her tone left no room for argument.
Adam clenched his teeth, but he looked away and fell silent. She knew perfectly well it wasn't the moment for a fight - not with new people, not out on an open street, not when monsters could still be lurking nearby.
Natalia shifted her attention back to Arnold and Victor.
Her eyes were cool, watchful, faintly suspicious.
"You two," she began calmly. "How did you manage to survive this long?"
She paused.
