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A sudden bang caught their attention.

Leaf’s eyes darted toward the house where Milo had disappeared.

“Was that a gunshot?” Tristan asked, alarmed. “Did it come from the building?”

Worried, Leaf took a few steps forward to get a better view of the entrance. Then another shot rang out.

“It’s coming from inside!” Tristan shouted, moving into action.

Leaf tossed his cigarette and grabbed Tristan from behind, holding him tight. He would never allow Tristan to rush headlong into that damned house.

The door burst open, and Milo came running out. He bounded down the steps and raced toward them as if chased by monsters. A man appeared in the doorway. Leaf recognized him at first glance as one of Diego’s suppliers, aiming his gun at Milo and firing. Milo stumbled, spat blood, and collapsed to the ground.

“Milo!” Tristan screamed, wriggling out of Leaf’s grip and running to his brother.

Leaf was paralyzed. Although the man retreated back into the house, Leaf knew he would escape through the back exit and vanish. Even if he could move his body, Leaf knew he wouldn’t be able to catch him.

“Oh my God!” Tristan fell to his knees and drew his brother into his arms. Panic surged when he saw his bloodied hands. “No, no, no …” He quickly tore Milo’s shirt that was tied around his waist and pressed it against the gunshot wound on his back.

“Call 911!” he yelled, applying pressure to the fabric on Milo’s wound.

Leaf hastily reached for his phone and dialed emergency services. He heard a woman on the other end, but as he watched the blood seeping through the checkered fabric and spreading on the street in a dark red pool, words failed him.

As Milo stared at Tristan with a pained expression, his breath grew shallower. Terror was evident all over his face, and the fear in his eyes sent a cold shiver down Leaf’s spine. He didn’t need to be a doctor to recognize what was happening here.

Tristan continued to press the shirt against Milo’s back, stroking his face with his other hand while softly whispering to him. When he noticed Leaf holding the phone to his side, he erupted like a volcano. “Leaf! Come on!”

The blockade broke, and Leaf put the phone back to his ear. Suddenly, the words flowed out of him, and after he rattled off the address, he screamed at the woman on the other end to hurry. When she asked him to stay on the line, he set the phone down and knelt beside Milo.

The shirt Tristan used as a makeshift bandage was already soaked with blood. Leaf then removed his own shirt, which he wore over a T-shirt, and took over the task of applying pressure.

“Please, bro. Hang on. We’re taking you to the hospital.” Tristan’s hands trembled, his voice quivered, and tears streaked his face.

As Milo slowly closed his eyes, Leaf shook him. “No, Milo. Stay with us. Stay awake.”

But Milo’s eyes remained closed.

Time stood still.

No wind blew.

Silence set in.

Tristan leaned over his deceased brother, clutching him even tighter in his arms and sobbing so bitterly that it ripped Leaf’s heart into shreds. A wave of grief he hadn’t anticipated overwhelmed him. The world around him seemed to spin faster and faster. His heart raced uncontrollably, and the rushing sensation in his head became a deafening roar.

Leaf jolted, shooting upright and gasping for air. Before running his bloodied hands through his hair, he paused, hearing Tristan’s sobs.

A man spoke to him from the side.

A siren approached from a distance.

Leaf felt as though he was trapped under a glass dome, his body numb, the sounds muffled, his head empty. He struggled to comprehend the events unraveling around him, his focus fixated solely on Tristan and Milo and the unfolding catastrophe.

“Out of the way!”

Everything around him was dark. An officer tugged at his arm, pulling him aside, but Tristan pushed him away. He wasn’t ready to let go of his brother yet. Leaf went to console him. As he placed his hands on Tristan’s back, he could feel him trembling all over.

He reluctantly stood up and stepped aside. Leaf feared Tristan might collapse, as he paced frantically, never taking his eyes off Milo. Two paramedics stood by, waiting, while an older man examined Milo. With a solemn nod, he signaled to them that they were no longer needed.