The Cage (Book 2) ✔️

Through Fire and Ash

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Through Fire and Ash 

Schneider's P.O.V.

The moment Julian hit the ground, everything else around me vanished into a gray mist. The gunfire, the shouting—it all faded into static. My body moved on instinct, dropping to my knees beside him.

"Julian!" His name ripped from my throat, ragged and raw.

When I saw the blood seeping through the front of his shirt, dark and spreading fast, my whole world unravelled by the seams. A fear unlike anything I had ever known clawed at my throat with its taloned grip.

His eyes fluttered open, barely, and his lips moved faintly.

"Schneider..." His voice was weak, barely audible over the chaos. His eyes were terrifyingly glazed over, and it looked like he was looking through me, not at me.

"I'm here," I said, my hands pressing against the wound in a futile attempt to stop the bleeding. His lifeblood was warm against my hand, and there was entirely too much of it. In a strained voice, I said, "I've got you." And I knew that that was a fucking lie.

Curse the day I decided to involve Julain in all of this! This was all my fault. I should have seen this coming!

I didn't hear Kasian approach until his hand clamped down on my shoulder, yanking me back.

"What the hell are you doing?" I snapped, jerking free and diving to wrap Julian in my arms again, shielding him from more harm. He looked so weak, his face already losing blood and turning impossibly pale.

"He's slowing us down. Leave him and get up before you catch a bullet in the head."

Eyes blazing, my head whipped to glower at my so-called brother.

Kasian's face was hard, his tone cold and cruel.

I stared at him, incredulous. This side of him was not new to me, but that he would disregard my feelings for Julian and what he meant to me infuriated me. "You can't be serious."

"He's dead weight," Kasian said bluntly, his sharp gaze cutting to Julian before locking onto mine. "Do you want to die here? Because if you stay, that's exactly what's going to happen."

A purely territorial fire blazed in my chest, and my hands tightened possessively around Julian even more. With a growl, I declared, "I will never leave him."

Kasian's lip curled, a faint sneer of frustration. "I didn't drag you out of that hellhole so you could throw yourself back into the fire for him. We need to move, now."

"You didn't drag me anywhere," I shot back, my voice low but furious. "I got out because I fought. And I'm not abandoning him."

Kasian's expression darkened, his jaw tightening. For a moment, I thought he'd argue, but instead, he turned away, muttering a curse under his breath.

"Fine. But if you get yourself killed, that's on you."

I ignored him, leaning down to lift Julian. My bruised ribs screamed in protest, but I pushed through the pain. He felt too light in my arms, and it only fueled the anger building inside me.

"Hold on," I leaned down and whispered against his ear, my voice breaking. "Just hold on."

Kasian moved ahead, his rifle barking fire into the trees. Schneizel and Cade flanked us, their weapons cutting down anything that moved. The gunfire was deafening, but I barely heard it over the sound of Julian's ragged breaths.

Kaisan's waiting SUV was a beacon of hope; our only chance of getting out of here alive. But as I stumbled toward it, a metallic clink froze me in my tracks.

A grenade.

"Kasian!" I shouted, panic clawing at my throat.

He didn't hesitate. In one fluid motion, he scooped up the grenade and hurled it back into the trees. The explosion lit up the night, sending dirt and debris flying. Kasian staggered but stayed upright, his expression grim.

"Keep moving!" he barked, not even sparing me a glance.

With renewed vigor, I surged forward. Aiden was already in the driver's seat and the SUV, yelling something I couldn't make out. Schneizel and Cade covered our retreat, their firepower keeping the enemy at bay.

I reached the SUV and collapsed into the backseat with Julian still in my arms. His blood soaked through my shirt, warm and sticky, and I pressed my hand against his chest, desperate to feel the rise and fall of his breath.

Kasian jumped into the front passenger seat, slamming the door shut behind him. Schneizel and Cade followed, slipping into the back with me and shutting the door just as a hail of bullets punctured holes into the side of the bulletproof car.

"Drive," Kaisan ordered, his voice like steel.

The SUV tore from the clearing, running over two of the bastards who were fool enough to intercept our way. Schneizel retrieved a device from his pocket and pressed a button. Behind us, an explosion shattered the night, and I turned just in time to see his pickup truck engulfed in flames, now a twisted hunk of burning metal. Two of our attackers, ablaze, staggered and stumbled in the inferno's glow.

My hands trembled as I looked down at Julian. His breathing was shallow, his skin pale, and his blood soaked everything. I leaned closer, my voice dropping to a whisper.

"Stay with me," I begged, my throat tight. "Don't you dare give up now."

The SUV hit a rough patch of road, jostling us, and I instinctively tightened my grip on him. His eyelids fluttered, and his lips parted as if to say something, but no sound came out.

"Schneider." Kasian's voice was sharp, pulling me back to the moment. "If you want him to live, we need to stop the bleeding. Now."

I met his gaze in the rearview mirror, and for a brief moment, I saw something in his eyes that wasn't cold calculation. But it vanished as quickly as it came, replaced by the same cold, unyielding determination.

"Get us to a doctor," I said, my voice shaking but firm.

For once, Kasian didn't argue. He leaned forward, pulling out a first-aid kit from the glove compartment and tossing it back to me. "Make do with this until we find one."

The SUV barreled down the dark dirt road, the sound of the engine blending with the pounding of my heart as I worked to save Julian.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Julian T.T

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