Melissa.
I kept running, my feet pounding hard against the cold stone floor as I forced myself not to look back. Looking back meant hesitation, and hesitation could cost me everything. My hands shook as I pulled the black scarf tighter around my head, wrapping it securely, hiding my face as best as I could. Each breath burned my chest, but I didn’t slow down. I couldn’t.
The entrance was in sight.
Hope flared inside me, brief, fragile, desperate.
Just a little more. Just a few more steps.
Then it happened.
The sharp clang of metal tore through the air, followed by the deep, echoing ring of the alarm bell. Once. Twice. Three times. The sound vibrated through the entire pack grounds, loud and unmistakable.
My heart dropped straight to my stomach.
Three rings.
That wasn’t just an ala
