The gun clicks.
The sound is small. Dry. Final in a way that doesn’t belong to death but to its absence.
For a split second, the world doesn’t understand what it’s hearing.
Elena’s scream cuts off mid breath. My heart slams so hard it hurts, bracing for an impact that never comes. The warehouse seems to hold its breath, thunder rumbling distantly as if even the storm is confused by the lack of finality.
Then it lands.
The chamber is empty.
The truth hits like a delayed shockwave, rolling outward instead of inward, leaving wreckage in its wake.
Adrian blinks.
Once.
It is almost human. Almost normal.
Then he throws his head back and laughs.
The sound tears out of him in sharp, hysterical bursts, echoing wildly off the concrete walls. It is not relief. It is not surprise. It is del
