The Sinner's Saint

PRETTY POISON

Getting back to the group takes longer than it should have. He keeps one hand against the wall and keeps his breathing controlled, because burning through oxygen right now isn't something he can afford.

The toxin is properly in him now. It doesn't exactly hurt, it feels more like everything has been turned down a few notches, dimmed and become heavier and slower than it should be. His thigh is bleeding steadily, he tied off his sleeve around it without stopping walking because that felt like a bad idea.

Walking to the meeting point, Nikolai sees him first and his face says everything. The whole group had done everything right tonight, clean, sharp, no mistakes, nobody slipped up, nobody cost Lev anything, Scarlet even took care of the secret second wave of Ghost's soldiers who tried to sneak attack from the south and yet at this moment everyone is standing there looking at him like they personally failed or didn't do enough and they aren't sure how to fix it.

For a second, nobody moves. Then everyone moves at once.
Nikolai is already reaching for him, Kendall has her hand up already checking his pulse, Hala looks like she is about to say something useful for once in her life, two of the soldiers step forward instinctively before stopping themselves because none of them actually know what to do, which is new. They always know what to do.

Lev sweeps Kendall's hand off him and pushes Nikolai back lightly.

He leans back against the wall and stays there trying to just breathe and steady himself. The pain isn't the problem, the problem is the unfamiliarity of what the toxin is doing, the way it's moving in waves he can't predict or control, the way his body keeps responding to things half a second late like the signal is being interrupted somewhere in transit. That is the part that bothers him, He doesn't like things he can't explain for happening inside his own body.

He brings his hands up and presses the heels of his palms to his eyes. They feel foreign. He checks his watch.

7:50

He stays very still for a moment with that information. Hes an hour late and he knows it's worse not having called her. He just hopes she'll let him explain.

"Get the car." He reaches into his pocket for his phone. His hands are shaking nonstop which is not something he is used to seeing. He turns on his phone to see that not only does he have no signal but also his battery is on 1%. He stares at the black screen when it dies for a second, his reflection looks back at him looking like something dragged through wreckage, anger gets the best of him for once and he throws the phone at the wall hard beside Nikolai barely missing him to make a point.

"Phone," he says. Scarlet already has hers out and tosses it across to him. Of all his soldiers, Ahmed and Scarlet have his trust completely, he can't explain why but it's always been that way. He scrolls to Alex's name, presses call, and watches the sky while it tries to connect.
Zero bars.

He pushes off the wall, catches himself, and keeps moving. Ahmed pulls up waiting for Lev to get in.

"All of you go back, take the rest of your night off," Lev instructs getting into the car, theres a med kit already waiting on the seat.

"I'll come with you," Scarlet says, holding the car door. "You need that wound looked at properly and you're not in any condition to argue with me about it." Lev's silent but scoots over as permission, she gets in and immediately gets to work, the med kit has barely enough but she makes it work.

She, Lev, Ahmed and Nikolai grew up together on the same training grounds so it doesn't take him long to notice how she's looking at him. It's the kind of look that means she's doing a very fast and very unflattering assessment of his current condition.