Ryan glanced at the descending stone wall, then scooped Echo into his arms and grabbed Clement with his other hand. Step by step, he trudged toward the wall, but the layers of white sand made every step heavier. Even with his strength, carrying two people slowed him down.
Echo noticed and pushed Ryan’s hand away. “I’ve got an idea. You just focus on getting yourself through.”
She let herself drop sideways onto the sand and rolled down toward the stone wall. Since she didn’t weigh much, her body spread the pressure evenly, keeping her from sinking. She tumbled all the way to the bottom corner of the wall.
Ryan’s eyes narrowed, seeing how it worked. Without hesitation, he swung Clement up and tossed him toward Echo. With his load lightened, Ryan picked up speed and raced toward the wall, the sand no longer able to hold him back.
Clement landed hard in the sand near Echo, but Ryan’s throw had too much force, sending him face-first into the sand. Echo lunged forward and grabbed the back of his collar just in time, preventing him from sinking too deep, though she didn’t have the strength to pull him out completely.
“Climb up!” Ryan barked, reaching them in a few quick strides. He hauled Clement to his feet with one hand and looked at Echo.
Without hesitation, she grabbed Ryan’s arm and began climbing up his body. The wall was too high for any of them to reach alone-they’d need to form a human ladder.
Echo planted a foot on Ryan’s shoulders and leaned down to grab Clement as Ryan lifted him up. Clement, knowing he had no room to struggle, remained silent and cooperative. Echo braced his waist while Ryan supported his legs, raising him until he could grip the edge of the stone wall. With a grunt, Clement pulled himself over.
“Hurry! Give me your hand!” Clement shouted from the top.
Clement sat on the edge, reaching down for Echo. She grabbed his hand while Ryan boosted her with a push from below, helping her flip over the wall.
Once on top, Echo sat for a moment to catch her breath. But realizing the wall wasn’t fully lowered yet, she crawled to the edge and dangled herself over.
“Come on, Ryan!” she called urgently, extending her hand toward him.
Ryan didn’t waste a second. He locked his hand with hers, gripping them tightly.
Echo pulled with all her strength, but Ryan didn’t budge. She gritted her teeth and tried again, but the sand had already reached his waist, making it nearly impossible for him to move. Echo knew that once someone was buried that deep in sand, it was almost impossible to break free.
“Ryan, try to push the sand away from your sides! You have to loosen it!” Echo’s voice cracked with desperation as she clung to him, her eyes burning red with frustration and fear.
Ryan’s brow furrowed as he glanced up at her, his cold, determined expression unchanging. He squeezed her hand tighter, his intense gaze revealing his unwillingness to give up.
Clement, still seated on the wall, noticed the struggle. His face tightened with urgency. “Hold on!” he yelled.
Without hesitation, Clement pressed down on Echo’s waist and jumped off the wall, yanking her backward. The sudden weight and momentum dragged both Echo and Ryan with a jolt.
But Ryan didn’t budge-not even an inch. The sand clung to him like a trap, holding him in place.
Echo grunted in pain, feeling like her arms were being pulled from their sockets, but she didn’t let go. Desperation overtook her as she clung to Ryan’s hands, pulling with everything she had, ignoring the searing pain shooting through her limbs.
Ryan could feel Echo and Clement pulling on him with all their strength, but the sand pressed in tighter, locking him in place. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to move-he just physically couldn’t.
Ryan glanced up at Echo’s tear-filled eyes, her panic clear, and murmured in a low voice, “Looks like you’ll just have to stay with me.”
“I know, I know! Just don’t let go! You promised I could only die by your hand. If you let go, that won’t happen!” Echo’s voice wavered with fear, but her grip on Ryan tightened desperately.
Ryan, on the other hand, looked calm-too calm. There was a dark edge to his stillness, a cold, ruthless smile slowly forming on his lips.
“I’m not letting go,” he said, his voice low and steady.
Ryan didn’t believe in sacrifice or letting anyone go. In his world, if someone mattered to him, they stayed with him-no exceptions, no escape.
Below them, Clement heard the exchange, and the raw intensity in their words hit him hard. It shocked him, but what hurt more was the deep sting that spread through his chest.
Driven by a surge of determination, Clement gritted his teeth, kicked off the stone wall, and flattened himself against it, using every ounce of strength he had. Wrapping his arms tightly around Echo’s legs, he let out a strained roar and pulled with all his might.
Suddenly, Ryan felt the sand shift beneath his feet. A glimmer of hope flashed in his eyes as he was yanked upward, just enough to move a step closer to freedom.
Gripping Echo’s hand tightly, Ryan growled, “Hold on!”
Echo nodded fiercely, words escaping her in her urgency. The sand was climbing fast, and every second counted. But as she felt him shift even slightly, she clung to him with unwavering determination, her eyes blazing with resolve.
Feeling the sand ripple and loosen beneath him, Ryan planted a hand on the stone wall and gave Echo a powerful yank. Using Clement’s strength to anchor him, Ryan surged upward.
With all three forces working together, Ryan finally managed to grab the edge of the wall. Now that he had a solid hold, the sand’s grip meant nothing. Ryan heaved himself upward, using the momentum to pull his body out of the sand completely.
In one swift movement, Ryan swung his legs over the wall, straddling it. At the same time, he grabbed Echo and hauled her up with him.
Clement, exhausted from the effort, felt the sudden release of tension and dropped to the ground below with a thud, gasping for breath.
Ryan didn’t hesitate-he pulled Echo with him as he jumped down from the wall, landing firmly on the other side. With her feet on solid ground again, Echo’s panic melted into relief, and she threw her arms around Ryan, squeezing him tight.
“You’re okay… You’re okay,” she whispered, almost as if reassuring herself.
Ryan wrapped his arms around her, feeling how tightly she clung to him. Her thin arms didn’t have much strength, but the way she held him felt strangely… comforting. It wasn’t just the relief of escaping danger; it was something deeper, something he couldn’t quite name.
He felt Echo trembling in his arms, her body shaking uncontrollably from fear. It wasn’t something she could stop, and somehow, that vulnerability stirred something inside him. Almost instinctively, Ryan hugged her closer, his grip tightening protectively.
It was strange-he’d faced death more times than he could count. Life and death were like two sides of the same coin to him, paper-thin and easily flipped.
Yet this moment, holding Echo while she shook with fear, made him feel something new. Something different. And he couldn’t quite understand what it was.
In Ryan’s arms, the warmth of Echo’s trembling body-shaking from fear and worry-washed over him, stirring something unfamiliar inside.
Warmth.
Yes, real warmth.
Something he’d never felt before. Comfort, too. Not the kind of comfort that came from escaping death, but a strange, soothing feeling that crept in, softening his cold, hardened world just a little.
A moment ago, he had seen raw emotions in Echo’s eyes-fear, panic, disbelief-but something else lingered in them, something he couldn’t quite place.
He didn’t care to figure it out, either. All he knew was that, for reasons he couldn’t explain, being with this woman calmed him.
And now, for the first time, he felt a small, flickering warmth in his heart, like a tiny beacon cutting through the endless cold.