They didn't run. They walked, quickly, purposefully, turning down two alleys before slumping against a cold brick wall, their breaths coming in ragged gasps.
"Holy fucking hell," Rielle panted, a wild laugh escaping her. "Dermatological burns?"
"I panicked!" Kara whispered, her hands trembling. "It was the first thing I grabbed!"
A shadow detached itself from the roof above. Rin dropped down silently beside them, her rifle case on her back. "The transport is two blocks east. We need to move. Now."
They moved as one, a unit again, fleeing the scene of the crime. They didn't speak. The adrenaline was crashing, leaving behind a bone-deep exhaustion and the dawning, terrifying realization that they had actually done it.
They had the prize.
They arrived at the rendezvous point—a different, pre-arranged garage. The door slid shut behind them, sealing them in silence.
Kara gently placed the medical bag on a workbench. With reverent hands, she reached in and pulled out the quantum-locked bio-case. It was cold and heavy in her hands. It seemed to drink the light from the room.
For a long moment, the three of them just stared at it. The thing that had cost them so much. The thing that was supposed to buy back their leader.
The mission was over. The hardest part was yet to come. They had the treasure. Now they had to walk back into the dragon's den and trade it for their heart.
Strangely enough when they got back then was as empty as a witch coven. Scarlet and Nezra when supposed to be back from negotiating with the ghost jacks, but what they met was an empty house