The truck screeched to a halt just outside the overgrown ruins of the old laboratory. Rusted walls, long forgotten by time, were nearly swallowed by ivy and thick tangles of creeping vines. Trees towered around the building like ancient guardians, their gnarled limbs casting jagged shadows over the cracked concrete. Fading sunlight spilled through the canopy in golden ribbons, casting long shadows across the cracked pavement.
.
Jack kicked the door open and staggered out, one arm clutching his side. Hot blood trickled between his fingers, soaking his shirt in a slow, spreading stain of deep maroon. Each step felt heavier than the last, as if gravity itself had grown vengeful.
"Dad!" Maya's voice broke as she leapt from the passenger side. She was beside him in an instant, hands steady even though her eyes brimmed with panic. "You're bleeding badly!"
Jack offered a breathless chuckle that quickly twisted into a grimace. "That's new… I've never heard you say that to me before."
"Don't get used to it," she snapped, her tone shaky despite the sarcasm. "Seriously, you look like hell."
"I'm fine," Jack muttered through clenched teeth, though his pallor said otherwise.
"You're not." Maya ducked under his arm, her slight frame somehow managing to support his weight. "Come on. Inside. Now."
Behind them, a low, agonized groan echoed from the back seat. Dr. Kim was slumped awkwardly, her breaths coming fast and shallow. Her skin had gone pale, and her head lolled slightly, eyelids fluttering.
Maya's head turned toward her, torn.
Jack caught the glance, even through the haze of pain. "Get her inside," he ordered, his voice strained but firm. "I'll manage."
"Don't make me come back out here for you," she muttered, half-heartedly.
With one last glance at him, Maya sprinted back to help Dr. Kim. The older woman leaned heavily on her, every step labored. Jack took two more steps, the weight of his injuries dragging him down. The world spun, colors bleeding together in a dizzying blur. The ground surged up to meet him.
He collapsed.
The sound of Jack hitting the ground jolted Maya just as she eased Dr. Kim into a dusty, decaying chair inside the lab. Her heart skipped.
"No, no, no"
She ran, faster than she ever had before, back out into the dying light. Jack was sprawled across the cracked pavement, his breathing shallow, lips pale.
"Damn it," she hissed, gripping his arm. Every inch was a struggle, but she dragged him toward the rusted doors, inch by painstaking inch. Her muscles screamed, but she didn't stop until they were inside.
The lab was still, haunted by echoes of the past. Dust floated in the beams of light that slipped through shattered windows. Machines once full of promise now stood lifeless, monitors flickering occasionally with faded remnants of code and static.
She laid Jack on the main examination table, its metallic surface coated in a thin layer of grime. His face was almost ghostly. Every breath he drew seemed a battle he might not win.
"Don't you die on me," Maya whispered, tearing into the nearest med kit. Her hands trembled, but her focus didn't falter. Forceps. Sterilizer. Needle. Thread.
"Hold on, Jack. I've got you."
She found the entry wound near his ribs and went to work. The bullet wasn't deep, but extracting it was brutal. Jack groaned, barely conscious. She sterilized the wound and stitched him up, knot by knot. The thread was coarse, and her technique imperfect, but it would hold.
There was no time for relief. Dr. Kim needed her.
Maya grabbed another kit and sprinted to her. The doctor's eyes fluttered open, just barely, as Maya assessed the wound on her arm. The bullet had gone clean through, but it needed cleaning and wrapping before infection set in.
"Sorry, Doctor," she murmured. "This is going to suck."
Dr. Kim winced as the bullet was removed, biting back a scream. Maya moved quickly, cleaning and wrapping the wound.
"Thank you," Kim whispered, her voice hoarse.
Maya sat back on her heels, wiping sweat from her brow. Silence settled over them. The lab, once a place of invention and hope, now felt like a tomb.
Her eyes flicked to Jack. He was alive, barely. Still breathing.
And then the question bubbled up, one she hadn't had time to ask until now.
"Dr. Kim…" she began, her voice hesitant. "How do you know my dad? I mean really know him. He trusts you. That's rare for him."
Kim exhaled slowly, her eyes growing distant. "Jack and I… we go back a long way. College."
Maya blinked. "Wait, what? I thought you were some covert scientist he worked with during his government days or whatever."
Kim let out a dry chuckle. "Not even close. We met in freshman chemistry."
"No way."
"Oh, yes. But we weren't friends at first. In fact, he couldn't stand me."
"What? Why?"
"I betrayed him, long time ago."