22. Jonah
Jonah
I hit the bunker door at full speed.
The charge blows inward with a violent crack, steel slamming against concrete while smoke rolls through the entryway.
Weapon up.
Heart pounding.
Searching.
Ronan whips around from the far side of the room, rifle raised instinctively before recognition flashes across his face.
“About damn time.”
I barely hear him.
My focus locks instantly on Sienna.
She’s slumped in the chair near the hardline setup, Oculus still covering her eyes, cables trailing from the system into the floor beside her.
Too still.
Way too still.
Her fingers twitch weakly against the armrest like she’s fighting something invisible.
“Sienna.”
No response.
Ronan moves closer fast. “She’s still under. It got worse after you hit the ridge. I tried pulling her back but—”
I’m already moving.
I rip the headset off her hard enough the cable snaps loose and toss it across the bunker.
Plastic crashes against the wall.
Don’t care.
I drop in front of her and grab both shoulders firmly.
“Sienna.”
Nothing.
Her breathing stays shallow.
Eyes moving rapidly beneath closed lids.
Still trapped somewhere inside that thing.
Cold fear punches straight through me.
“Hey.”
I tighten my grip slightly.
“Come back to me.”
No reaction.
Behind me, Ronan shifts uneasily. “She told me not to force her out too early.”
“I don’t care.”
Because I can feel it.
She’s slipping.
Every second deeper into that system.
“No,” I mutter fiercely. “Not happening.”
I lean closer until we’re almost forehead to forehead.
“Listen to me.”
My voice lowers.
Steady.
Certain.
“You are not in there alone.”
For one terrible second—nothing changes.
Then her fingers twitch again.
Small.
Barely there.
Hope spikes hard in my chest.
Good.
“That thing doesn’t get to keep you,” I continue quietly. “Not today.”
Her breathing catches unevenly.
Ronan exhales sharply behind me. “She’s fighting it.”
“Yeah.”
I slide one hand carefully up to the side of her face, grounding her.
“So am I.”
Her skin feels cold beneath my palm.
Too cold.
I lean closer again.
“Sienna.”
My voice roughens this time despite myself.
“Come back to me.”
Silence.
Then suddenly—
A sharp breath tears into her lungs.
Her fingers fist violently into the front of my shirt.
And her eyes fly open.
Wild.
Disoriented.
Terrified.
She jerks hard in the chair like she doesn’t recognize where she is.
“Sienna.”
I catch her instantly before panic fully takes hold.
“I’ve got you.”
Her gaze locks onto mine.
Everything freezes.
The fear still burns in her eyes for half a second longer before recognition finally pushes through it.
“Jonah…”
The way she says my name almost wrecks me.
“I’m here.”
Her grip tightens harder against my shirt like she’s anchoring herself to something real.
Something solid.
Alive.
Her breathing shakes unevenly while she looks around the bunker slowly.
Back here.
Not inside ORACLE anymore.
“I almost didn’t make it,” she whispers.
Pain twists sharply through my chest.
“I know.”
I brush my thumb lightly across her cheek without thinking.
Grounding her.
Grounding myself.
“But you did.”
Her eyes close briefly at the contact.
One shaky breath leaves her.
Real.
Human.
Not controlled.
Not hidden.
“That’s what matters.”
Sienna swallows hard before opening her eyes again.
Fear still lingers there beneath the exhaustion.
Different fear now.
Deeper.
“I think it knows me now.”
My jaw tightens instantly.
Good.
She blinks at me slightly.
“That’s not—”
“Because now,” I say quietly, “we know exactly what we’re dealing with.”
Silence settles heavily through the bunker.
Rain taps softly against the concrete overhead.
Somewhere outside, distant thunder rolls across the mountains.
Sienna studies me carefully.
“It isn’t just a system,” she says softly.
“No.”
I hold her gaze steadily.
“It’s a fight.”
The words settle between us.
Heavy.
Real.
And for the first time since I found her—
Sienna doesn’t look like someone searching for the nearest escape route.
She just looks at me.
Tired.
Terrified.
Alive.
And finally—
Still.