The car tore through the streets, its tires screeching against the cracked asphalt as Kiko fought to keep control. The echoes of gunfire still rang in their ears, each shot replaying in Pedro's mind as he lay sprawled across the back seat, clutching his ribs and gasping for breath. He muttered curses under his breath
His shirt was soaked with blood, his face battered, but his eyes burned with suspicion. Who are you?" Pedro rasped, his voice hoarse, every word dragged out of him as it cost him a piece of his soul. He stared at Jason, his gaze sharp despite the pain. "Who the hell are you people?"
Jason turned slightly, his expression calm, almost unnervingly so given the chaos they had just escaped. "We're the ones ready to help," he said evenly, his tone carrying a quiet authority. "That's all you need to know right now."
Pedro's jaw clenched, but he said nothing more. His breathing was ragged, his body trembling from exhaustion and blood loss. Kiko's hands tightened around the wheel, his voice breaking through the tense silence.
"Where am I supposed to fucking drive, Jason?!" His frustration was palpable, his nerves frayed. "We can't just keep circling the city with half the underworld chasing us!"
Jason's eyes flicked to the rearview mirror, scanning the empty streets behind them. "I'll direct you," he replied calmly, as if the weight of the situation hadn't touched him. "Just keep moving. I'll tell you when to turn."
The car sped through the labyrinth of streets, headlights cutting through the shadows. Jason's instructions came sharp and precise—left at the junction, straight past the abandoned market, right down the narrow alley that smelled of rust and oil. Kiko obeyed, his knuckles white, his heart pounding with every turn.
Finally, Jason leaned forward, his voice low but firm. "There. Up ahead."Kiko squinted through the windshield. A warehouse loomed in the distance, its corrugated iron walls scarred with rust, its windows boarded up. It looked abandoned, forgotten by the city, but Jason's tone carried certainty.
They pulled up to the side entrance, the car's engine growling before Kiko killed it. The silence that followed was heavy, broken only by Pedro's labored breathing. Jason stepped out first, scanning the area with the precision of a man who trusted nothing. The place just looked like how it was going to be in ten years. He was the only one who knew this place.
It used to be a warehouse where a popular snack stored most of its produce before it was boxed and sold around the globe. But after the owner murdered his wife and her lover in a cheating scandal, the warehouse had shut down and had become forgotten in the years that followed. Now this was the warehouse Jason was going to use for his activities.
Kiko followed reluctantly, muttering curses under his breath, while Pedro dragged himself out of the back seat, his movements slow and painful. Jason pushed open the warehouse door. The hinges groaned, the sound echoing into the cavernous darkness inside.
Dust hung in the air, illuminated by thin shafts of moonlight that pierced through cracks in the roof. The place smelled of rust, oil, and old secrets.
"This is where we'll be safe—for now," Jason said, his voice steady. He motioned for Pedro to follow, then glanced back at Kiko. "Get the car inside. We can't leave it out here."
Kiko hesitated, his eyes narrowing. "Safe? In this dump? Jason, you've dragged us into hell tonight, and now you want me to believe this place is safe?"
Jason didn't answer immediately. He walked deeper into the warehouse, his footsteps echoing against the concrete floor. Finally, he turned, his face half-lit by the moonlight. "Safe doesn't mean comfortable. Safe means hidden. And right now, that's all we need."
Pedro leaned against the wall, his body trembling, his eyes darting between the two men. "You don't understand," he muttered, his voice low but urgent. "Belikov won't stop. He'll burn the city down if it means finding me."
Jason's gaze hardened. "Then we'll make sure he doesn't."The warehouse swallowed their voices, the silence pressing in around them. Outside, the city pulsed with danger, Belikov's men already spreading like a plague through the streets. But inside, for the moment, Jason, Kiko, and Pedro had carved out a fragile pocket of survival. The night was far from over.