Page 10 of Victorious: Part 3

A barrage of gunfire echoes through the warehouse, closer this time. I duck instinctively, feeling the heat of a bullet tearing past my ear. Blood trickles down the side of my face.

“Cover me!” Sin shouts, charging ahead, his boots pounding the floor like a war drum.

I move with him, ducking low, barreling through the smoke, every nerve on fire. My rifle barks in my hands, and another soldier goes down.

But we’re not alone.

I hear the familiar click of reloads and the shuffling of feet.

The Cartel is trying to flank us.

But it’s too late, we’re already inside, already making them bleed.

But the real fight? That’s still ahead.

My pulse spikes as I hear Clover’s voice, faint but unmistakable, like a beacon through the smoke.

“Phoenix?” Her voice is breathless, wild, but it’s hers, and it fucking shreds me to pieces. “Phoenix, oh my God. You came! Youactuallycame to save me?” There’s a squeal at the end, like she’s won the lottery and I’ve just handed her a brand-newmotorcycle.

But that’s not Clover.

Not thereal her.

That’s the serum talking.

I force my way through the thick, choking haze. My boots slam against the cold metal stairs, every step a pulse of urgency in my veins. I’m getting closer. I can hear her clearer now, and it cuts through me like a blade.

“Phoenix?” she calls again, like she’s floating somewhere far away. “I knew you’d come! You’re my husband, duh!Obviously, you’re here. You always smell like sex and gunpowder and… loyalty. Ugh, I love you so much right now. But I can’t see you, am I still dreaming?”

Did they mix something else into this truth serum?

I climb higher, the smoke thickening, but I’m fucking relentless. I can almost feel her presence, the pull of her like gravity, pulling me upward.

“Do you remember what we did in the Bellagio garden?” Her voice is louder now, almost too loud, echoing off the steel beams. “Because my clit definitely does. I haven’t stopped thinking about it. Nearly getting caught!God Almighty.Can we do it again after you shoot all these assholes?” She giggles at the end, and the fire in my veins freezes cold for a split second.

It’s not funny.

Not even close.

But goddamn if she doesn’t sound like herself, even when she’s half out of her mind.

“Jesus Christ,” Sin mutters behind me, voice tight with disbelief. “They really loaded her up on that truth serum. She’s high as a kite.”

My stomach squeezes, needing more than anything to get to her. Every step is heavier than the last, my lungs burning from the smoke, my heart beating louder with every floor I climb. Ican hear her—her voice, her chaos—and the panic claws at my chest.

I’m not there yet.

Not close enough.

And then I hear it.

Another voice.

A man’s voice.

Closer this time.

“Someone gag thatputa. She hasn’t shut up in an hour.”