Chapter 9 · Blood Under Crossfire

"Keep your head down!"

Ronin slammed me against the steel wall as silver rounds ripped through the corridor behind us.

The impact knocked the breath out of my lungs. His chest pinned mine. One arm locked around my waist, and his other hand covered the back of my neck. His body took the full spray of shattered metal.

"Get off me," I gasped.

"Gladly. Give me one second to stop them from turning your throat into confetti."

Another burst chewed through the pipes above us. Hot fragments struck Ronin's shoulders and clattered against the floor.

He didn't move.

His mouth hovered near my ear. I felt each rough breath against my skin, too hot for a man standing in a freezing steel tunnel.

"You brought me into a kill box," I whispered.

"You ran into one. I followed. There's a difference."

"You followed because you think I belong to you."

His grip tightened. "I know what the mark says."

"The mark can burn. It doesn't get to choose for me."

For half a second, his eyes dropped to the raw bite at my collarbone.