13. Jonah
Jonah
T he first drone drops into the ravine so fast it barely sounds real.
One second there’s silence—
The next, the sharp mechanical whine slices overhead.
“Move!”
I shove Sienna forward just as the drone banks hard between the cliffs above us.
Then another sound cuts through the air.
And another.
My stomach tightens.
Three.
“They multiplied,” Ronan growls behind us.
“Yeah,” I mutter, already moving faster. “They’re done playing.”
Gunfire cracks overhead.
Not drone fire.
Rifle fire.
Sharp.
Controlled.
Close.
Ronan pivots uphill, firing twice toward the ridge line. “Boots on the left flank! Three—maybe four!”
Loose rock explodes beside us.
Sienna stumbles hard when debris sprays across the ravine floor.
I catch her instantly, dragging her tight against my chest while I pivot us both behind a jagged rock formation.
Bullets slam into stone where she stood half a second earlier.
Fragments rain across my shoulder.
“You hit?”
“I’m fine,” she breathes.
Lie.
Her hand knots hard into the front of my shirt while her pulse hammers against my arm.
Fear.
Real fear this time.
Not controlled.
Not buried beneath logic and strategy.
Good.
Because now she understands exactly how bad this is.
I grip the back of her neck briefly, forcing her eyes to mine.
“Stay with me.”
Her breathing shakes once before she nods.
“I am.”
Another explosion detonates somewhere deeper in the ravine.
The ground trembles beneath us.
Dust rains from the cliff walls overhead.
“They’re collapsing the terrain!” Ronan shouts. “Driving us forward!”
Of course they are.
This was never a chase.
It’s containment.
They’re steering us exactly where they want us.
I grab Sienna’s hand again and run.
No time to think.
No time to build a better plan.
Just movement.
Survival.
The ravine narrows ahead into a tight choke point boxed in by steep rock walls.
My stomach drops instantly.
Kill box.
“They’re funneling us!” Ronan shouts.
“I know!”
Sienna suddenly jerks hard against my grip.
“Jonah—stop!”
I keep moving.
Then her voice cracks through the gunfire sharp enough to cut straight through instinct.
“JONAH, STOP!”
I plant my boots hard and yank her backward with me—
The ground ahead explodes.
Rock erupts upward in a violent blast as the narrow path collapses inward.
Stone crashes into the ravine floor where we would’ve been seconds later.
Dust swallows everything.
For one heartbeat, silence hits.
Then gunfire rains into the choke point from above.
A perfect kill zone.
We would’ve walked straight into it.
I turn toward Sienna slowly.
She’s breathing hard now, chest rising fast while dust clings to her dark hair and pale skin.
“You saw that.”
Her eyes snap to mine immediately.
“No.”
Another sharp breath.
“I calculated it.”
Same damn thing.
Ronan slides in beside us behind cover, reloading fast. “New plan. Now. Lena’s going to be real pissed if I die out here.”
I scan fast.
Forward’s gone.
Left ridge is exposed.
Rear exit’s closing.
Only one option left.
And I hate it the second I see it.
I look at Sienna.
She already knows.
Her face stills instantly.
“No.”
“We don’t have a choice.”
“There’s always a choice.”
“Not one that keeps you out of ORACLE.”
That lands hard enough I physically see it hit her.
Because now she understands exactly what I’m doing.
Choosing.
Not reacting.
Choosing her over the mission.
Over the safer option.
Over myself.
“I draw them,” I say. “You move with Ronan.”
“No.”
“Sienna—”
“No!”
Her hand locks around my arm before I can move.
“They aren’t hunting you—they’re hunting me. If we split, they’ll track you.”
“Good.”
Her breath catches sharply.
“You want that?”
“I want them off you long enough for you to disappear.”
“That’s suicide.”
“Only if I stay predictable.”
Anger flashes through her eyes instantly.
“You are predictable.”
I almost smile despite the bullets ripping over our heads.
“Then I guess it’s time I change that.”
Silence crashes between us.
Heavy.
Ronan checks the ridge again before looking back at me. “We’re out of seconds.”
I barely hear him.
My focus stays locked on Sienna.
“This is the play.”
Her grip tightens harder around my arm.
“You don’t get to do this.”
“Yeah,” I say quietly. “I do.”
Because if I don’t leave first—
She will.
And I already know she’d sacrifice herself without hesitation if it meant stopping HELIOS.
I’m not letting that happen.
Not while I’m breathing.
“Go with Ronan.”
“I’m not leaving you.”
“You are.”
Gunfire cracks closer.
Too close.
I lean toward her before I can stop myself.
Close enough our foreheads almost touch.
“Trust me.”
Her breath shakes softly against my mouth.
Barely there.
But I feel it.
Her eyes search mine desperately now.
Not tactical.
Not analytical.
Personal.
“That’s not fair,” she whispers.
“Yeah,” I murmur. “I know.”
Then I pull away before I lose the ability to do it.
“Ronan—take her!”
“I’ve got her.”
Ronan moves immediately.
Sienna fights him instantly.
Of course she does.
“Jonah!”
I don’t look back.
Can’t.
Because if I see her face right now—
I won’t leave.
And she needs me to.
I break hard right out of cover and sprint straight into open terrain.
Gunfire snaps toward me immediately.
Perfect.
Bullets tear through the ravine walls around me while I run full speed across loose rock and smoke.
One shot cracks close enough I feel the air move past my shoulder.
Good.
“Come on,” I mutter under my breath, rifle up as I fire back toward the ridge. “Follow me.”
Above the ravine, movement shifts instantly.
Attention.
Tracking.
Exactly what I wanted.
Every drone pivots toward my position.
Every shooter redirects fire.
They take the bait.
Every single one of them.