Rebuilt For Revenge (Editing)

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Dante:

The heavy, uneven breathing crackling through the coms made my chest tighten. How did she always manage to get herself into trouble the moment we stepped inside? I barely know her, but... I can't help feeling my stomach twist.

Not like I'd admit it out loud—heck, none of us would—but there's a part of me that doesn't want her getting hurt. She's reckless, yes, but she's also... unpredictable. And unpredictable in a place like this can get someone killed.

I step through another doorway and freeze. Paintings. Everywhere. Expensive, old-looking ones, carefully framed. Whoever "they" are, they've got a taste for art. Mechanical engines running around stealing priceless stuff—how do these people even operate?

I drag a hand lightly across one painting; a thin layer of dust clings to my fingers. This isn't recent. These people have been here a long time. That means they know how to defend themselves. That means danger.

Then a loud bang shatters the quiet. My chest jumps. Great. Just great.

"What did you do?" Tyler whispers, voice sharp with annoyance.

"You know... just signing my death warrant," comes a voice over the coms. That has to be her. Only she could be that clumsy and casual about it. A long, piercing beep follows—she must've turned off her coms.

Of course it's her. Only she. I grit my teeth, frustration bubbling under worry. I don't know her well, but the thought of her getting hurt makes my chest tighten in a way I didn't expect.

"Top right is clear," I mutter, peering around the corner toward the staircase.

"Second floor clear," Tyler whispers back.

"So they must be on the bottom floor," I say, crouching carefully down the stairs.

"Where did loud mouth go?" Calum mutters. If she hears that, he'll never live it down—but I can't stop my own thoughts from wandering.

"Last I saw her, she ran in... said something about trouble."

"A dog, I know..." Xavier adds, voice low. My stomach tightens further.

Then Cashe's voice, quiet, cuts through the comms. "Guys... I found them."

I nearly jump. One moment the space is empty; the next, another voice, low and controlled.

"Whereabouts?" Tom whispers.

"Downstairs. Kitchen. All nine of them."

Nine. Not ten. My heart skips. One of them missing? That could only mean... Octavia.

"Is the girl there?"

"Nope. Why?"

"She was with us. I swear she saw one of them."

"Let's just deal with what we have," Xavier murmurs, tone sharp.

We move cautiously to the ground floor. The building is a maze. A kitchen? Who would've guessed? Every corner, every shadow, could be hiding a threat. I tighten my grip on my weapon.

"Found you," I whisper, crouching near Cashe, Matthews, Xavier, Tom, and Calum.

"Where's Tyler?" I glance toward the staircase.

"He went looking for Octavia. I told him she's probably up there."

My stomach twists. I barely know this girl, but the thought of her alone, facing whatever threat is upstairs, is unnerving.

"How did they not react to that bang?" Calum mutters.

"There's another girl around here," I reply. "Maybe they thought it was her."