Jack's breath began to come in shallow bursts, and his grip on Anthony tightened as he felt the man's hot breath on his neck.
"Thought you could escape, huh?" The man chuckled. Jack recognized his voice as the voice of Wilson, Snyder's most trusted guard. "And with your little friend too. Well, let's see what Snyder has to say about that."
Wilson pressed his gun into the small of Jack's back and spun him around so that he was facing towards the Refuge once again. Jack's stomach dropped at the thought of what inevitably awaited him and Anthony inside.
Wilson shoved Jack forward. "Walk."
Jack did as Wilson asked, slowly moving towards the entrance while his mind spun, desperately trying to come up with a plan. Looking down at Anthony in his arms, so small pressed against his chest, Jack suddenly knew what he had to do.
When Jack reached the entrance to the Refuge he tripped and landed on his knees, subtly setting down Anthony in the process.
"Come on, boy. Up," Wilson said exasperatedly, kicking Jack in the legs.
Jack hid his wince when the hard boots Wilson wore made contact with his legs, refusing to give Wilson the satisfaction of knowing he had hurt him.
Taking a deep breath Jack counted to three in his head, gathering all his strength as he prepared himself. He then swiftly kicked Wilson in the shins, causing Wilson to groan in pain and lunge for him.
Jack was quicker than Wilson, however, and rolled out of the way. Wilson fell forward, his gun going off with a loud bang when he hit the ground.
Jack cried out in pain as the bullet grazed his leg, but he did his best to ignore the blood now pouring out of his leg and he stood, preparing himself for Wilson's next strike.
Wilson let out a low growl, seething with anger as he picked himself up off the ground. He stalked towards Jack, his face red and dripping with sweat despite the chilly night air.
Wilson swung at Jack's face in a blind rage, but Jack easily deflected him and punched him in his large stomach. As Wilson bent over, gasping for air, Jack moved towards him again and grabbed the gun in his hand, pulling on it as hard as he could.
Wilson finally let go of the gun, his face turning purple as he struggled to breathe. Jack could smell alcohol on his breath, meaning that Wilson was likely at least slightly drunk and in no condition to fight anyone, let alone an angry kid with hardly anything to lose like himself.
Holding the gun tightly Jack limped over to Wilson and, without a second thought, struck Wilson in the head with it. Wilson crumpled immediately, but Jack could see that he was simply unconscious from the way his chest rose and fell steadily as he lay on the ground.
With the fight over Jack could feel the energy draining out of him. He was overcome with the need to lie down and sleep, but he forced himself awake and hurried over to Anthony, who was miraculously (and perhaps worryingly) still asleep.
Jack gently picked up Anthony and checked him all over for injuries. Satisfied there were none, he turned and limped towards the exit as fast as he could, knowing someone would soon find Wilson and know he had escaped.
As soon as he was past the front gates of the Refuge, Jack let out a huge sigh of relief. Safe. He and his little brother were finally safe.
With this major obstacle behind him, Jack soon became aware that not only was he losing a lot of blood but he had no idea where he was going. His head ached and he could hear ringing in his ears, a sure sign that unconsciousness was looming.
Jack stumbled along the streets blindly, almost dropping Anthony a few times. Nothing looked familiar, they seemed to be in a part of the city that Jack had never seen before. Brightly lit theaters crowded the streets, which were quiet at this time of night except for the occasional strolling couple or shady-looking businessman.
Jack gazed up at the impressive marquees, his exhausted brain only vaguely registering the words painted on them in fancy lettering.
Finally turning away from the buildings Jack stumbled down a side street, collapsing with Anthony in his arms next to a doorway which appeared to lead to the inside of one of the theaters. The night's events catching up to him, Jack slowly started to slip into a world of darkness. Just before he fell completely unconscious Jack thought he heard footsteps approaching, but he was powerless to stop whoever was coming towards him and Anthony as blackness surrounded him and pulled him completely under.