course he did.
Lily left the brass key on the floor and dragged herself into the vent.
The door opened.
Light swept across the room.
Buck saw the cabinet first.
“Damn it.”
Mercer saw the vent.
“Go!”
A gunshot exploded.
The bullet hit the vent wall beside Lily’s knee.
Metal screamed.
She did not scream.
She crawled.
The vent sloped downward, narrow enough to scrape her elbows raw.
Behind her, Buck yelled, “You shot at her?”
Mercer snapped, “You want her alive, catch her. You want your life, stop whining.”
