Chapter 2

2.

He was Cody, after all. The same SAR captain who dug three children out of the Malibu wildfires with his bare hands, the man who pulled me back from a cliff's edge.

How could he not come?

A little while later, I heard the faint sound of sirens in the distance, growing closer.

My heart pounded. I grabbed a broken piece of metal pipe and started banging frantically on the concrete slab above me.

"Hey! Is anyone there?! I'm in here!"

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The sound of metal on concrete was piercing in the ruins.

Soon, I heard Cody's voice.

Calm, steady, with his usual commanding tone.

"Team A, secure Zone A. Team B, check the unstable buildings…"

Tears instantly welled in my eyes.

I knew he would come save me!

I hammered the pipe with all my strength, screaming hoarsely, "Cody! I'm here! Down here!"

The footsteps stopped.

The radio crackled twice, and then―

Tinsley's crying cut through my eardrums.

"Cody! Snowball… Snowball is still on the apartment balcony! If she dies, I don't want to live anymore!"

The blood in my veins froze solid.

After a brief silence, Cody took a deep breath. "Tinsley, don't worry, give me the address."

Then, he gave a calm order.

"Ryan, take your guys to Building B, Unit 3. Target: one white Persian cat. Move!"

The footsteps quickly faded away.

I was frozen, the metal pipe slipping from my fingers.

The pain in my leg suddenly meant nothing.

My heart felt like someone had just stabbed a hole right through it.

Cody, did you really… choose the cat?

My phone screen lit up, showing the photo of Cody and me.

He had such a beautiful smile.

I cried a self-mocking tear and then slammed the screen off.

In the darkness, there was only the sound of my own breathing.

My left leg was aching and numb. I reached down to touch it and felt something sticky―blood.

Gritting my teeth, I tore off the sleeve of my Arc'teryx jacket and fumbled to tie it tightly around my upper thigh.

The pain of the fabric cutting into my skin made my vision blur, but at least it slowed the bleeding.

My phone screen was shattered, but it would occasionally light up due to the gyroscope.

I stared at the unread message: 【Cody, Van Nuys Blvd, Summit Gear. Leg pinned. Rescue now!】

Read.

No reply.

He didn't even hesitate. He took everyone to save Tinsley's cat.

A metallic taste rose in my throat. I swallowed it down and grabbed the pipe again, smashing it against the slab above me like a madwoman.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The sound echoed through the rubble, but there was no response from outside.

I could faintly hear Tinsley's sobs and Cody's low, comforting voice.

"Snowball will be okay, don't be scared."

His voice was so gentle it was like a knife in my ear.

I gripped the pipe so hard my nails dug into my palm.

Sierra, what the fuck are you doing?

I'm here, desperately trying to get saved, while he's out there comforting his ex-girlfriend.

I stopped abruptly, my chest heaving.

Don't panic.

I'm a professional survival coach. I've taught so many people how to survive in impossible situations. Now that it's my turn, am I just going to wait to die?

I took a deep breath, forcing myself to calm down.

First, assess the environment.

The concrete slab above was slanted, but there was a crack on the left side letting in a sliver of light.

I gritted my teeth against the pain and slowly shifted my body, reaching for the edge of that crack.

Just as my fingertips touched it, I heard footsteps outside.

"Captain, over here! I think there's someone underneath!"