The moment the heavy steel doors opened to the outside, I stumbled into the cool air and bent over double, resting my hands on my knees as I gasped for oxygen.
He can't still get to me, I thought wildly, my chest heaving as my heart hammered against my ribs. I can talk about what happened, I can handle the memories... but seeing his face...
I shook my head violently, trying to clear the image of Carlos from my mind. The weight of it was suffocating. I needed to move. I had to run him out of my head before he tore down everything I had built here.
I took off at a sprint toward the perimeter training track. The moment my boots hit the gravel, I didn't slow down to pace myself—I just pushed harder, my legs pumping in a desperate effort to outrun the ghosts in my own head.
I'm a badass mer
