I press the small plastic card against the sensor on the door and let out a huge sigh of relief when the green light flashes and I hear a faint metal click. Lexie lets out a whoop of joy, but the glare I send her silences her instantly.

"Why don't you just wear a giant flashing sign that says 'hey, we're escaping' on it?" I snap.

"Sorry," she whispers, shoulders slumped.

I don't bother feeling bad about snapping at her, too focused on getting her door unlocked to care. Within seconds, we're navigating the narrow hallways. I become increasingly frustrated as I begin to realize that I have no idea where I am.

We're definitely not in the normal cell block, and as we run through each identical corridor, my hope for escape fades.

"We have to find the guys," Lexie pants, struggling to keep up.

I halt in my footsteps with a groan. Fuck. In my desperation to get out of here, I forgot about the rest of our party.

"Fuck," I balk. "We don't have time for this shit! How are we supposed to find them?"

"Aren't you supposed to be the expert on this kind of stuff? You're a Warrior for crying out loud, get your shit together!"

Lexie is in my face, trying her best not to yell at me. I'm taken aback by her fervor, but she's absolutely right. I should be in control here. I should have a handle on this situation, especially since everyone is counting on me to get them out safely.

"Right," I nod my head. "You're right. We'll just have to check every room, but we need to move quietly. I wouldn't be surprised if they already know we escaped, so I need you to step exactly where I step, move exactly how I move."

We make quick work of clearing the building with no sign of our friends, and to my delight, no sign of any Warriors.

"They're not here, oh god, what do we do?" Lexie cries worriedly.

I feel a knot in my stomach, too, but I try not to show it. They're counting on me.

I take a deep breath.

"It's okay, we're just going to have to check out some of the other buildings."

"How many buildings are there on base?" She eyes me skeptically.

"... A lot," I admit reluctantly. "At least a hundred, probably more. I'm sure there are a few secret spots even I don't know about."

"Fuck," she whimpers in response.

"It's going to be fine. Let's go."

I walk quietly to the last door at the end of the hallway, assuming it led to the outside. Holding my breath, I press the key in my hand to the sensor, saying a silent prayer in my head. I curse under my breath when it flashes red.

"Don't. Say. A word," I mutter when I notice Lexie opening her mouth, no doubt to complain more about the situation we're in.

"Think, Rey, think."

I hear the familiar faint click of the door opening, and in a moment of sheer panic, I grip Lexie's arm and pull her into the adjacent corridor.

"Wha-" I clamp my hand down on her mouth, listening closely to the muffled footsteps, hoping they don't turn in our direction.

I hold my finger up indicating that I want her to wait here silently while I peek my head around the corner. The Warrior is a few inches taller than me, but slimmer than most of the body builder types I've grown accustomed to, which makes what I'm about to do much easier.

With his back facing me, I take this as my window of opportunity. I jump on his back, but I'm surprised by how quickly he responds.

He was expecting me.

The Warrior reaches up instantly to try and pull me off, but I wrap my legs tighter around his waist to keep myself stable. He responds by throwing us both to the ground, so quickly that he's able to break my grip and take the advantage so that he's hovering over me.

He takes both of my wrists in one of his massive hands and wraps the other one around my throat, his thumb pressing into my windpipe. The position reminds me vaguely of practicing with Killian, but without the warm, tingly sensation that comes with being near him.

His eyes are narrowed with murderous intent.

My vision begins to blur, my breathing becoming more rapid and shallow. I try to struggle against him, but my movements become clumsy and awkward as I begin to black out.

Thankfully, he wasn't expecting Lexie. She slams into his side with enough force to knock him off of me, leaving me gasping for air. Unfortunately, the Warrior recovers quickly, too quickly for Lexie to react and he grips a fistful of her hair, painfully pulling her head back.

I struggle to get up, still catching my breath, but waste no time and charge at the man. I pull my arm back and connect my fist with his face as forcefully as I can. When he topples over, I position myself above him, much like he did with me.

Except, instead of choking him out, I snap his neck.

The crunching sound doesn't phase me in the slightest, but one look at Lexie's face tells me she's about to be sick.

"Y-you killed him," she stammers.

"He would have killed us if I didn't," I shrug.

I rummage through his pockets, almost in tears of joy when I find not only another key card, but a cell phone as well.

Tossing it at Lexie, I say, "Here, look through this, see if you can find anything about where they're hiding the guys."