Helpless, I watched the red light on the dog's vest extinguish.
Across the room, the countdown on my son's chest leaped to the final ten seconds.
——
"No—!"
Ignoring the agony radiating through my body, I scrambled up and sprinted toward my son.
Two steps. That's all I managed.
Strong arms tackled me from behind, slamming me onto cold cement.
"Stay back!" Leon's voice was a vicious growl against my ear. His grip was iron. "It's too late to disarm. If you go over there, you'll trigger the mechanism early!"
"Do you want to kill us all?"
Not far away, my seven-year-old son sat tied to a chair, alone in the dark. His small chest heaved with sobs.
"Dad, save me! Dad!"
Each cry was a serrated blade twisting in my heart.
I wrenched myself free, blinding panic overriding all logic.
I ran.
But I was too slow. The timer hit zero.
*Boom.*
Sparks erupted. A massive shockwave lifted me off my feet and threw me backward. The world dissolved into choking smoke and ringing silence.
As the gray haze slowly drifted apart, the scene before me shattered my soul.