(AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN…) FINDING LUNG

Taylor’s second trip into ABB territory went considerably better than the first.

That was, honestly, not a particularly high standard to clear.

She had not been burned alive this time, which already placed the experience well above the previous attempt in terms of overall quality. Her throat still hurt whenever she swallowed, and every now and then her body tensed instinctively whenever somebody lit a cigarette or opened a restaurant door and let warm air spill into the street, but at least she remained alive long enough to actually do what she had come here for.

Even so, finding Lung proved harder than expected.

Taylor had known going in that it would not be simple, yet some part of her had apparently still hoped the ABB kept their giant rage dragon hidden somewhere obvious. A warehouse full of armed guards would have been nice. Maybe a heavily defended building with suspiciously tattooed men standing outside it.

Instead, she found nothing.

The neighborhood stretched on in every direction in a maze of aging apartment buildings, cramped storefronts, narrow alleys, and streets packed tightly enough together that everything started blending after a while. People watched her constantly now. Word had clearly spread after her not-so-little public breakdown, because fewer tried pretending not to notice the tall white girl wandering around ABB territory with no apparent survival instinct.

Nobody stopped her though, so she kept walking.

Sometimes she peered through windows when she thought nobody was paying attention. Other times she tested apartment doors she passed, slipping inside the occasional unlocked building long enough to glance through hallways before leaving again when it became obvious Lung was not secretly hiding in somebody’s kitchen.

It felt ridiculous.

By the fourth apartment building, she had started seriously considering whether Lung even fit indoors anymore. But eventually, her luck ran out.

“Hey.”

Taylor looked up from the stairwell she had just exited to find three men standing near the mouth of the alley outside. All of them were Asian, older than her by at least a decade, and armed in ways that immediately clarified they were not ordinary civilians. One carried a pistol openly at his side while another rested a hand near the pocket of his jacket in the kind of stance that suggested he had something worse hidden there.

None of them looked eager to attack her, which honestly surprised her a little.

Taylor blinked once.

“Oh,” she said.

The tallest of the three frowned at her. “What are you doing?”

That surprised her even more.

She had honestly expected the ABB to operate under a shoot-first philosophy when it came to suspicious strangers wandering around their territory. The fact that they were asking questions instead almost threw her off balance for a second, especially since she was certain they had at least heard of her by now.

Taylor glanced briefly between them before answering honestly. “Looking for Lung.”

All three men stiffened slightly, suspicion flashing across their faces almost fast enough to miss. The one nearest the alley entrance narrowed his eyes at her like he was trying to figure out whether she was insane, suicidal, or both.

Taylor simply stared back, and the silence dragged. Then it dragged longer.

Eventually, the tallest man shifted uncomfortably under the increasingly awkward weight of her unflinching gaze. Because really? What exactly were they expecting here? Taylor stood there in simple clothes with tired eyes, messy hair, and absolutely nothing about her that suggested she posed any conceivable threat to Lung of all people.

She was just some random girl.

“What do you want with him?” another man finally asked.

Taylor considered lying for about three seconds, then she shrugged slightly.

“I need information about Lung for the PRT.”

One of the men barked out a startled laugh before stopping abruptly when nobody else joined in. Another stared at her openly now, like he genuinely could not decide whether she was incredibly brave or catastrophically stupid.

Taylor honestly was not sure either anymore.

The tallest man rubbed at his face. “You’re with the PRT?”

“Not really.”

“And they sent you here?”

“Kind of.”

The three of them exchanged glances, some silent conversation passing between them while Taylor waited. She could practically see the confusion happening in real time.

Then, unexpectedly, the tallest one jerked his head toward the street.

“Come on,” he muttered.

Taylor blinked.

“…What?”

“You wanted Lung,” he said. “You found him.”

For a moment she simply stared.

Then, before they could apparently reconsider whatever terrible decision-making process had brought them here, Taylor hurried after them deeper into ABB territory.