The Man the City Swallowed

The instant the thought landed, the structure in his head unfolded into a route map: which beam had been crossed, which door still opened, where the maintenance corridor curved, which section of the bridge had an exit. A glowing city map rose from the dark. He had no idea what this was, only that he needed to disappear. He yanked a steel chain off the ground and threw it into an abandoned transformer cabinet. The short burst of white sparks bought him seconds of chaos. He grabbed Maria and dragged her down the sloped drain toward the service exit. Behind them, the black-clad men chased hard, boots splashing in the water. Ethan did not want to be a hero. He just wanted to survive.