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Instead of ringing the alarm right away, Sisi and I do some rounds on all levels, cataloguing who might need assistance and who can move on their own.

What we're seeing is dire, though, and Sisi is getting increasingly more affected as she sees more and more children on their little beds, barely able to move, because they might bust their stitches.

"God, Vlad," she whispers, "that could have been me. That could have been any of us."

My hand on her shoulder, I give her a quick squeeze.

"There's nothing we can do now except get them away from here," I tell her.

"I know," she sighs, writing down the last of the room numbers that might need assistance.

With that done, we ring the fire alarm, watching as people start running around, a chaotic mess quickly forming in the hospital.

"We can't linger," I tug her to me as she continues to look at the sick children with sadness in her eyes.

"I know," she eventually acquiesces, but I can see the change in her demeanor.

"I wish I could make them suffer so bad." Her voice is barely above a whisper, her hands balled into fists. There's a new conviction in her eyes, and the fact that this upset her has me seeing red.

"Oh, but I will, hell girl." I take her hand, unfurling her fist and massaging it slowly. "I'll make sure they rue the day they were born. And you," I lift her fingers to my lips, "will have a front row to witness their agony."

39

VLAD

"Everyone should be out by now," I mention as I kick open a door leading to the basement.

As we'd looked through the building, I'd also found an old blueprint of it. While I can assume that the underground level's been built much later than the building plan, I'd found a door that leads directly there.

"Shouldn't we wait for the others?" she asks as she takes off her nurse’s outfit, dumping it on the ground. I do the same with my white doctor's coat, the extra clothing only impeding our movements. And we'll need all the freedom to move.

"They'll come. Eventually," I add dryly.

There's this anxiousness building inside of me, every step I take making me imagine the moment I'll finally confront Miles for everything he's done to us.

Vanya.

Not for the first time, I wish she were still here. I wish she could see me making Miles pay for what he did to her, and for all the suffering he put us both through.

More than anything, I wish she could see me keep my promise.

I won't fail you, V.

Decades of preparation, and it was all for this moment.

Holding tightly onto Sisi, I lead us down a windy path to a cellar-like space. Cobwebs everywhere, it's clear this particular entrance has not been used in a long time.

"The others are in the building." Sisi nods at me just as we reach a long corridor.

"Stay close to me," I tell her, my eyes already scouting the area.

Taking a deep breath, I let myself scan my surroundings, all my senses ready to pick up any signal.

There's an eerie silence, the only noise, our steps as we carefully move forward.

Sisi scrunches her nose in disgust when we reach a particular area where the stench of the old cellar is too much.

I tighten my hand on hers, letting her know she should be on guard. According to the plans we'd looked at, this tunnelshouldlead somewhere. But the destination hadn't been recorded on the blueprint, likely because it was built much later. I could wager a guess, though, as to where this leads.