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For a moment, just a heartbeat, I see it—the flicker of hesitation in his eyes. It’s all I need.

“Fine,” he sneers, and I see my opening. His arrogance seals his fate.“But first—”

I don’t wait for him to finish. In one fluid motion, I lunge forward, closing the distance, gambling everything on this split-second decision. My movement startles him—it’s written all over his face—and his grip on Isabella falters.

“Run, Bella!” I shout as I launch myself at Juan, tackling him to the ground.

She doesn’t hesitate. She bolts toward Vapor and the others, her survival instincts kicking in. All that matters now is that she’s safe.

Juan thrashes beneath me. A shot explodes, shattering the night—my ears ring, but I don’t feel the bullet. Not yet. I wait for the pain to come, but it doesn’t. He tries to get another shot off, but I slap the weapon out of his hand.

Everything slows down, each second stretching out endlessly as we grapple in the mud. I try to gain the upper hand, but he’s fast and slippery as an eel. He rolls away from me before I can grab him, and scrambles into the brush.

“Catch!” Vapor yells, tossing me his gun.

I grab it and chase after Juan, running through the swamp. He’s fast, but I’m right on his heels. I take a shot, but I miss. He darts into the water, splashing as he swims across it toward the other shore. I run into the black water until it’s waist-deep. Wading as fast as I can, I get to the middle of the river as he reaches the other side. As he steps onto solid ground, I stop so I can aim. Pulling the trigger, I hit him right in the kneecap.

“Fuck!” Juan cries out as his leg crumples beneath him.

I could have shot him in the back, but I didn’t because I want to see the light fade from his eyes when he dies. I want him to know it was me.

He crawls across the mud, desperately trying to get away. I swim as fast as I can. I can’t wait to finish him.

I surge from the water like a vengeful spirit, gun raised—Juan’s mine. Then fire rips through my calf, sharp as a blade. The pain is instant, raw, merciless. I turn to find a fucking cottonmouth latched onto the back of my leg.

“Fuck!” I grab the snake and rip its fangs out of my skin. Throwing it against the ground, I jump back. As it turns to attack, I shoot its head off.

Fire explodes through my calf, a searing, white-hot pain that spreads like venom-laced lightning through my veins. My muscles seize almost instantly, the skin around the bite already swelling.

“What the fuck happened?” Vapor yells as he reaches my side.

“Snake. Get Juan.”

“Where?”

“That way.” I point to where Juan disappeared into the darkness.

“Go after him,” Vapor orders the other men.

They rush forward in search of the cartel leader.

I grab Viper by his cut. “Get him. Don’t worry about me.”

“I’m not fucking leaving you. If we don’t get you to a hospital, you’re going to lose your leg. We don’t have much time.” Vapor pulls his phone out of his cut and clicks on the flashlight app. “Shit. Fuck. Skin’s already darkening. Like it’s rotting from the inside out.”

A wave of nausea hits me hard, my vision tunneling as dizziness drags me toward the mud, the pounding of my heart the only thing louder than my ragged breaths.

“Bella,” I rasp. Then I see her—mud-streaked, fierce, alive. Relief crashes into me like a tidal wave. And then… darkness.

***

When I wake up in the hospital, Isabella’s standing by my side. Her hair’s a tangled mess and she’s covered in scratches and mud, but she’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.

“Bella,” I groan, my throat raw, my body wrecked—but she’s here. She made it.

“Oh, thank God!” She crashes into me, warm, real, safe. Her body shakes, and I realize—she’s crying. “I thought you were going to die.”

A doctor walks into the room. “Damn lucky,” the doctor mutters. “Cottonmouths don’t play around. The venom started working fast, but we got antivenom in you before it could do real damage. I cleaned out the bite, gave you fluids to keep your blood pressure stable, and monitored for any allergic reactions—so far, so good. Your leg’s going to be swollen and sore for a while, but with rest and meds, you’ll pull through. Just try not to piss off any more snakes.”