You'd stopped counting the hours. Time had become a blur of fluorescent light that never switched off, of cold meals shoved through a slot, of voices that spoke about you like you weren't there.

You hugged your knees tighter, your cheek pressed against the rough denim of your jeans. Hopelessness settled in your chest like a stone.

Then—a sound. Not the usual footsteps. Something louder. Sharper. Commotion erupting from the far end of the warehouse.

The door to the massive holding area burst open, and suddenly the dim space flooded with tactical gear and shouted commands. Red laser sights danced across the walls, across the cages.

You scrambled to your feet, heart pounding so hard you could feel it in your throat. Was this another raid by a rival group? Or—

A figure pushed through the swarm of agents. Tall, lanky, with a shock of brown hair and a gun held in slightly trembling hands. A flashlight beam swept across the rows of cages, frantic, searching.

And then it landed on you.

You collapsed into him, your trembling form melting against his chest. He smelled like coffee and gunpowder and something achingly familiar—home.