The red targeting lights from the helicopter swept across the water in steady, merciless pulses. I grabbed Sergio’s hand and held on. "What do we do?"

There was nothing around us but open ocean. If they fired on us out here, there was nowhere to go.

"Don’t panic." Sergio’s voice was controlled, measured. "I carry the Ligendza bloodline. She wants to use you against the Hales — she won’t risk destroying everything in one shot."

His words made sense, but my body wasn’t listening to logic. My heart was slamming against my ribs, and the dark water stretching endlessly in every direction made everything feel smaller and more fragile. Out here, Sergio was all I had.

The helicopter found us quickly and swung into pursuit. In that moment, a desperate, irrational thought crossed my mind — what if it was Lewis coming for us? If it were him, my children and I might actually be saved. But the universe wasn’t being kind tonight. A mounted gun on the helicopter opened fire, rounds striking the water ahead of the boat’s path — not to destroy us, but to force us to stop.

"Sergio!" I pressed both hands over my belly, hunching forward instinctively.

"I’m here." He pulled me against his chest, one arm wrapped around my shoulders, shielding me as rain and sea spray hit us from every side. I gripped his jacket and held on, not entirely sure I’d survive the night.

Would I ever make it back to Lewis?

I didn’t even know his face anymore — not really. The only image I held was a memory from childhood, a boy at a piano. I couldn’t let myself picture what he’d look like if he found us gone. If he found us gone.

Sergio had been right — they weren’t trying to sink the boat. They were herding us. But stopping wasn’t an option. If we were caught, neither of us would walk away from it cleanly. That family had no reason to show mercy to Sergio, and even less reason to spare me.

The speedboat pushed hard through the storm, the helicopter tracking us through the dark sky above. The waves were enormous, the wind brutal, the rain unrelenting. We were two small lights on a black sea, running from something that could move faster than us. I pressed my face against Sergio’s shoulder and prayed — not to anyone specific, just outward, into the dark.

I’ve already lost so much. Rejected, betrayed, broken apart and somehow put back together only to end up here. I haven’t even held my children yet. Please. Not yet. Give me this one thing. They’re innocent — whatever debt you think I owe, don’t make them pay it.

Tears ran down my face, mixed with rain, gone before they could mean anything.

Then the sky cracked open — a violent streak of violet light split across the clouds directly above the helicopter. The thunder that followed shook the boat. I looked up just in time to see the aircraft shudder, smoke beginning to pour from its body as it tilted sideways and dropped, spinning once before hitting the ocean with a crash that sent white water spraying in every direction.

I couldn’t move. I couldn’t speak. The wind dried the tears on my cheeks and I just stood there, staring at where it had been.

Had that actually just happened?

Sergio’s hand moved slowly over my hair, then my back. "It’s over, Coco."

It wasn’t — I knew that. A woman like his grandmother didn’t stop because of one setback. But for now, for this moment, we were alive. I pulled back from him and wiped my face. That was enough.

With the helicopter gone, the boat slowed. The storm began to quiet around us, the waves dropping from savage to rough. Sergio had planned ahead — of course he had. He navigated us to a nearby island where he already had a safehouse prepared, a designated stop if things ever fell apart.

He looked at me when we arrived — soaked through, hair plastered to my face — with an expression I didn’t have the energy to interpret. "You’ve been through enough tonight. Rest."

"Will they search for us here?"

"There are dozens of islands and reefs in this stretch. Without a tracker, they’d have to check them all. We stay quiet for a few days and let them move on. The most obvious hiding places are usually the last ones they look." He paused. "You’ll have to manage with basic conditions for a little while."

He wasn’t exaggerating. The island was small and lived-in — fishing families, wooden structures, damp salt air in everything. We were in a basement that smelled of must and old wood, the walls close, the ceiling low. I changed into dry clothes, sat down, and felt the exhaustion of the night crash over me all at once. By the time the sky was beginning to lighten, I finally slept.

The nightmares found me anyway. I woke up cold and damp with sweat, heart already racing, staring at the basement ceiling. When I realized Sergio wasn’t nearby, something sharp moved through me and I pulled myself up the stairs.

"Dr. Zimmer—"

He appeared at the top, and I exhaled. "Where did you go?"

"Food. And I checked the perimeter." He read the tension in my face and softened. "I’m not leaving you."

I reached out and closed my fingers around his sleeve. "Good. I wouldn’t know what to do without you right now."

He pulled me gently into his arms, and I let him. "Coco — is there a chance I’ve started to matter to you, even a little?"

I kept my expression open, careful. "Last night would have broken me without you there. I’m grateful you’re here."

Sergio, you’re a decent man. But I’m sorry. You will never have what you’re looking for from me.

What I didn’t say was the other thing taking shape in my mind — that being stranded here, cut off, was actually an opening. Sergio felt safe right now. Comfortable. If I could let him stay comfortable, let him believe I was settling in, he might loosen his watch enough for me to find a way out.

I had memorized Lewis’s number from the note before we fled. I ran it through my mind again and again like a prayer, afraid of what would happen if I let it slip.

Sergio brought food — simple, nothing impressive — and I ate it gratefully and meant it. We were alive. That counted for everything. Afterward I asked, "How long do we stay?"

"A week. Long enough for them to assume we’ve already moved on." He seemed pleased with how calmly I accepted that. "There will be two guards outside at all times. If you need anything, ask them."

"Of course. I’ll be right here." I smiled at him, soft and compliant, and watched him leave satisfied.

Seven days. Earn the trust, avoid the danger, and look for the crack.

I went back down to the basement and started sorting through the bag I’d grabbed in the chaos — shaking out clothes, refolding what I could. And then, as I lifted the small crossbody I’d accidentally thrown in, I noticed the rabbit keychain attached to it.

Its eyes were glowing.

I turned it over slowly. The eyes were some kind of gemstone, catching the dim light in a way they had no reason to. I searched along the seams, the ears, the back — and when I twisted one of the ears slightly, a voice came through.

Low. Male. Familiar in a way that bypassed my memory and went straight to something deeper.

"Elena — thank God. I’ve finally reached you."