The forest swallowed them whole.
Snow exploded beneath boots that had long since stopped feeling anything.
Nobody bothered counting how long they'd been running.
Every breath burned.
Every heartbeat felt borrowed.
The only thing that mattered was putting one more tree between themselves and whatever had turned that road into a slaughterhouse.
Hale was the first to slow.
He didn't stop.
He simply lifted one hand.
The signal rippled backward.
Naomi reduced her pace first.
Then Aubrey.
Cherie.
Terri nearly stumbled into the back of Isabella before realizing they weren't sprinting anymore.
The silence hit them almost immediately.
No gunfire.
No engines.
No screaming.
Only wind threading through frozen branches.
Hale bent slightly, both hands resting against his knees as he tried to steady his breathing.
His lungs protested every inhale.
Years ago, he'd have kept running.
Years ago, he still believed exhaustion was something you could ignore.
Now he knew better.
