Chapter 276: Bridge Chase

Chapter 276: Bridge Chase
Elena's POV

The sudden wail of police sirens sent my heart racing as officers swarmed the harbor, their commands blasting through megaphones.

"Drop your weapons! Don't make this harder than it needs to be!"

I felt Donovan's grip tighten around my arm, his fingers digging into my skin with desperate urgency. "Now's our chance!" he hissed, yanking me toward the waiting car.

I glimpsed Stefan diving into a nearby vehicle, tires screeching as he gave chase. His predatory grin through the windshield made my skin crawl.

"I'll drive!" Teresa announced, shoving Serafina into the passenger seat and quickly binding her hands with a zip tie.

In the back seat, Donovan kept checking behind us. Under the dim light, I finally saw his arm clearly—mangled flesh, congealed blood, infection already spreading.

"Your arm looks terrible," I said, reaching for the first aid kit with trembling hands. "I need to bandage that before you lose any more blood."

Donovan winced. "Make it quick."

To distract him from the pain, I asked, "What's the deal with this Stefan guy? He seems hell-bent on killing you."

Donovan sucked in a sharp breath as I cleaned his wound with an antiseptic wipe. "Stefan and I trained at the same facility," he said through gritted teeth.

"We were friends once. Both worked for the same private military contractor." His face darkened. "I wanted out—a normal life. He saw it as betrayal. To him, leaving meant betraying the organization... betraying him."

"Talk about bad luck," I muttered, wrapping gauze around his arm.

Just my luck to get caught between two trained killers with a personal vendetta.

A violent impact jolted the car forward. Stefan had rammed us from behind, his black Mercedes SUV now inches from our bumper. The sound of shattering glass filled the car as bullets pierced our rear window.

"Get down!" Donovan pushed me down against the seat, shielding me with his body.

"You were right," he growled. "My biggest regret is not killing that psychopath when we were still at the training facility. Could've saved us all this trouble."

These two seem equally determined to murder each other.

Teresa swerved onto the Thames Bridge, with Stefan following, his attacks becoming more aggressive.

"If he keeps this up, we're going over the edge!" Teresa shouted, struggling to maintain control.

Our white BMW raced across the bridge with the black Mercedes in relentless pursuit. The trunk lid flapped wildly, bent and misshapen from the impacts. Stefan drove like a man possessed, his face split in a manic grin visible through his windshield.

Donovan tried to aim his gun at Stefan, but each impact made it impossible to steady his hand. "Damn it! I can't get a clear shot!"

"You can't escape, Donovan!" Stefan's voice carried through the shattered window, followed by maniacal laughter.

In the passenger seat, Serafina had curled into a fetal position, clutching her seatbelt like a lifeline. "Are we going to die?" she whimpered.

Donovan's face hardened with determination. "This isn't working. I need to open the door and shoot out his tires."

I looked at Stefan's crazed expression and felt my stomach drop. "I'll hold onto you. Just be quick about it."

Teresa pushed the accelerator to the floor. "I'm going as fast as I can, but I can't shake him!"

She narrowly avoided being forced into the bridge's guardrail for the third time. "Watch out!"

I grabbed a seatbelt and looped it around Donovan's waist, then gripped it tightly. "Ready?"

He nodded grimly. "Open the door."

The moment the door swung open, Stefan's laughter grew louder. "Finally decided to come out and play?"

Stefan opened his own door, one hand still on the wheel as he fired wildly at Donovan. The two vehicles raced side by side, both men exposed to the rushing wind and each other's bullets.

"This crazy bastard," Donovan muttered, taking careful aim despite his injury.

I held onto the belt with all my strength, my heart pounding. "Be careful!"

Donovan fired three shots in quick succession. "Die, you son of a bitch!"

The third bullet found its mark, blowing out Stefan's front right tire. The black Mercedes swerved violently, nearly spinning out of control.

Stefan wrestled with the steering wheel, his eyes darkening as he glared at our car. "You think this is over?" he shouted, his voice barely audible over the wind.

"We're almost off the bridge! Just hold on a little longer!" Teresa called out, the exit ramp finally coming into view.

Relief washed over me as I pulled Donovan back inside. "Get in, quick!"

Donovan had barely settled back into his seat when he said, "We should be safe for now."

The words had barely left his mouth when multiple gunshots rang out behind us. The back window exploded into a thousand pieces, showering us with glass. A searing pain tore through my shoulder, stealing my breath away.

I looked down in shock to see blood spreading across my blouse. The white-hot agony radiated through my entire upper body, making it hard to focus.

"It hurts..." I gasped, pressing my hand against the wound.

Donovan turned toward me and froze, his face going blank with shock. His hands trembled as he reached toward me but stopped short of touching the injury.

"Elena? Elena? Are you okay? Answer me!" His voice sounded distant through the haze of pain.

"I'm fine... just hurts a bit..." I managed weakly, though the burning sensation suggested otherwise.

Behind us, Stefan had climbed halfway out of his sunroof, firing his weapon with reckless abandon. His disabled vehicle remained stationary on the bridge, but his rage carried across the distance.

"Donovan! This isn't over!" he screamed, his voice barely registering through my pain-fogged mind.

Before Donovan could examine my injury, another violent impact rocked the car from behind. Through the shattered rear window, I glimpsed Stefan's twisted smile, blood dripping down his face from flying glass.

"How did he catch up to us?" Teresa cried, panic in her voice.

Donovan barely registered Stefan's return, all his attention focused on me. "Elena, stay with me!"

Stefan, seeing Donovan's distraction, laughed cruelly. "Worried about your little girlfriend? How touching."

I watched through blurred vision as he raised his gun, aiming directly at Donovan. "Looks like I found your weakness."

The world began to fade around me, darkness creeping in from the edges of my vision. Stefan's cruel words were the last thing I heard before consciousness slipped away completely.