Chapter 37 After The Shot

• The sound of gunfire echoed once more off the warehouse's concrete walls, followed by the thud of a body falling to the floor. For a few seconds that felt like an eternity, no one moved, no one dared breathe too loudly.
• The dust kicked up from the concrete floor slowly settled back down, and the sharp smell of gunpowder still hung thick in the air of the room, mixing with the scent of rust and rotting wood that had long been characteristic of the old warehouse.
• Aleksander was the first to snap out of that frozen state, his eyes quickly sweeping over his own body, then Rania's, then Ethan's, still pressed between the two of them—no blood, no wounds. He turned quickly toward the source of the shot that had brought down the masked man, and found Captain Yusuf still standing with his weapon raised, thin smoke curling from its barrel.