Facilis Descensus Averno [REWRITING]

xviii. safehouse

"Skye?" The gun fell, and the man blinked. "Is that you?"

She felt something draining from her body, out through the soles of her feet and into the ground. The pit of her stomach began to stir.

"Oh my god, it is. It really is you."

When he stepped forward, she took a step back. Her lungs suddenly remembered how to breathe again, and she stretched a frown across her face.

"Tim." Her head barely shook. "Skye isn't here right now."

"What?" The dark-haired man frowned, his eyebrows knitted together. "Wh—What do you mean she's not—oh." His Adam's apple bobbed and he closed his eyes. "You're... You're the other one."

She closed her eyes and nodded. "I'm sorry."

"No." He turned his face away. "No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have assumed."

"No." She was unwanted. Big surprise. "I understand why you would."

"Yeah, it's, uh—" He shook his head and sighed. "It's been a while."

"I did not expect to wake up so soon."

He hummed, slowly bending down to pick up the gun, and tucked it away in his back pocket. "Don't like the rest of us too much, do you?"

"I don't want to hurt her." An odd feeling rose inside her chest. She took a deep breath, but the weight remained. "You know what I am. You know how dangerous this is."

"Yeah, I know." He inhaled sharply, eyes scanning her from head to toe before his forehead furrowed. "Wait. You and Skye—you two aren't... You're not dead, are you?"

She blinked and froze. "No." At least, not that she was aware of. She turned her gaze down and weakly lifted a hand. "I would know, if we were."

"Okay. Good. That's good." He kept his hand on the handle of the gun as he glanced around. "C'mon, we need to keep moving. It's not safe here."

Her forehead twitched, but she said nothing. She carefully stepped through the line of shrubbery, dragging her legs through when little twigs snagged and scratched against the stitching of her jeans. She almost flinched when something touched her elbow, and snapped her head up to see his hand barely grazing her arm.

"You okay?"

She forced herself to nod. A lump rose up her throat, and she closed her eyes for a moment when she felt needles pricking her eyes.

"You really shouldn't be here right now," he spoke lowly, glancing back up to scan their surroundings again. His hand hovered below her elbow. "Neither of you should."

A cold draft blew past them. Her body shivered, but she forced herself to follow him. "I don't know where we are."

"How long have you been awake?"

She turned her head up and her eyes flickered across the landscape, breathing heavier the longer she stared at the distance. "Not long. Ten minutes."

"Shit." He sighed under his breath. "Well, it's a good thing I found you before he did. God knows what he'd do to you, both of you."

"He?"

"HABIT."

She drew in a sharp breath and clenched her jaw. So he's here.

"Can you walk?"

She forced herself to nod. "Can you?" she asked, eyes glancing at his bad leg.

He followed her gaze briefly, then softly clicked his tongue. "I'll be fine. Just a flesh wound. Been through worse, you know."