The sound of Hansen hitting the reinforced concrete wall was a sickening, wet crunch that seemed to vibrate through the very floorboards of the laboratory. Amara's heart stopped for a jagged, agonizing beat as she watched her oldest friend, the boy who had shared her bread in the orphanage and the man who had hunted monsters to keep her safe, slump against the shattered glass of a chemical rack. He didn't move. His head lolled to the side, a thick trail of crimson leaking from a gash on his temple, staining the white floor of Vane's sanctuary.
"Hansen!" Amara's voice was a ragged, high-pitched sob that tore through the ozone-thick air.
