She broke from his embrace and crouched to inspect his injury, her eyes welling up with tears.
âDid Lorenzo do this to you?â
âIâm fine.
â Mitchel didnât want Raegan to dwell on his injury.
Gently pulling her to her feet, he redirected her attention, asking, âWhat about you? Are you hurt?â
His gaze softened, the earlier coldness replaced by a concern that Raegan recognized and found comforting.
It was sincere.
Feeling his genuine care, Raeganâs racing heart began to calm.
âs BunnyBookery Despite their history of unpleasant encounters, at this critical moment, those issues seemed insignificant.
Right now, neither of them wanted to waste time explaining the complicated past.
âIâ¦â Raegan started to reply, but her words were cut off by the chilling sound of a gun being c@@ked.
Both of them froze.
The man in black had stealthily approached, aiming the guns at the two and ordering, âHands up! Donât move!â
Raegan tensely obeyed, lifting her hands.
Mitchel did the same.
The man, still bitter about Raeganâs earlier defensive actions, was intent on retribution.
He targeted her specifically, ordering, âLet her come over here.
â
âNo way!â Mitchel immediately protested.
Despite his raised hands, he stepped protectively in front of Raegan, asserting, âSheâs not going anywhere.
â
âYouâre courting death!â the man snapped, firing a shot in their direction.
âWatch out!â Raegan reacted swiftly, pulling Mitchel aside.
The two of them quickly rolled to the ground for cover.
Mitchel swiftly pulled a smoke grenade from his gear and hurled it toward the elevator entrance.
Within moments, the area was enveloped in a dense cloud of smoke.
In the smoke screen, coughing could be heard.
No one could see anything!
Two more gunshots pierced the haze as the man fired wildly, driven by desperation.
Mitchel had pulled Raegan into a tight embrace, finding a semblance of shelter in a corner.
As the smoke began to thin, Mitchel tapped Raeganâs back and exchanged a look with her.
Mitchel then made a low crawl toward the man, swiftly grabbing the manâs leg and executing a takedown.
The man hit the ground hard, his weapon clattering away from his grasp.
A fierce hand-to-hand struggle ensued.
The man, aware of Mitchelâs leg injury, exploited it mercilessly, aiming kicks at the vulnerable spot.
As Mitchelâs wound worsened, bleeding profusely, he started to lose strength and the upper hand in the fight.