text: The breaths I take are short and shallow, like the desperate gasping of a grounded fish. As the room in front of me sinks in and out of focus, threatening to tilt and spill me onto the floor, I slide down the wall at my back and allow my blood-slicked hands to rest in my lap. The fire below has warmed the floor to a pleasant temperature, the kind that you feel on clear summer days. Across the room, smoke starts to creep under the door, trending up into the air to gather against the ceiling. The fire would follow. I close my eyes for a moment, listening intently to my slowing heartbeat. It’s gotten so terribly slow. I start violently when the phone in my pocket buzzes, groping for it without bothering to open my eyes. I flip it open and speak, my voice hoarse and breathy. “Yes?" There’s a moment’s pause, and then a familiar voice replies, exhausted but still pleased. “Thank God, I thought you wouldn’t pick up. We’re on the plane, Marcus. I’ve got my sister." There's a small commotion that I can't hear, and then the voice again. "If you catch the next flight, we'll be able to get on international together. How long until you reach the airport?" His words make my heart throb in my chest, and I suddenly feel my lips tremble. I take a short, steadying breath, and it catches in my chest, my lungs protesting the effort. I answer softly. “I won’t be making it, Rick.” There’s a pause, and when he speaks again, I hear the denial in his voice. “What do you mean?" I chuckle into the receiver, closing my eyes as the smell of the smoke reaches my nose. “You know perfectly well what I mean.” Another pause, and this time I hear Chris in the background. There’s a moment of silence from my partner, and when he speaks, his voice is trembling, “What happened? What’s gone wrong? Are you captured?” I shake my head before murmuring, “Things just went a little haywire for a moment is all. But I’ve assured that you guys are safe. No one will ever try to hunt you down from this side." “Marc-” There’s a series of odd sounds through the receiver, and then Chris’s voice is on the line, frantic, “Marcus? What's going on?” My voice instinctively adopts a tender tone, “Things on my side just... took a bit of a turn. But I want you to know that you’re safe. I destroyed all of the files on you two.” There’s a sharp sound. She had dropped the phone, and it takes her a moment to retrieve it. “Really? How? Why aren’t you coming?” I smile to myself and allow her time to figure it out herself. She hesitates. I can hear it in her silence. She knows exactly what’s going on and simply doesn’t want to accept it. “You’re going to die, aren’t you?” Her voice is broken and sad, and it pains me to hear it. “Yes.” Another silence. "How soon?" The crackling of the flames below me has become almost deafening, and the sweat pouring from my body could qualify the room as a sauna. The air tastes burned, and the feeling of it ripping through my airways makes me cough violently. I'm barely able to summon the strength to speak. "Very." She sobs. "I'm so sorry, Marcus." "Don't be. I dragged...you kids in." My next words are a weak murmur, my energy becoming scarce. “Put Rick on, please.” There’s a second of silence as the switch is made, and then Rick speaks, his voice subdued, “Any last orders, boss?” My lips twitch in an attempt at a smile, but I lack the energy to complete it. I listen to the fire crackle outside the door, taunting me with it's never-ending noise. “Just...one.” It takes a lot of effort to say each syllable. I pause to take a breath, and I find it nearly impossible to draw air into my lungs. I’m running out of time. I take as much oxygen as I can before saying, “When...you land...I want you to... go back... to your wife and daughters. Live...a proper life.” I go to take another breath, but I end up choking on it and coughing violently. I peel my eyes open just a bit to see that the air around me has turned gray and thick, encasing me in a world of smoke. I take a moment to gather myself, breathing heavily, my lips only trembling a little bit as my heart clenches. “But don’t...forget me...okay?” There’s a lengthy pause before he speaks, his voice cracking in a manner much like my own. “I won’t.” My lips tighten and I feel tears collect in my eyes. I whisper hoarsely, the tears spilling down my cheeks, “Thank you.” I push the end call button with the last of my energy. My arm drops and the phone clatters across the floor. I feel my head tilting to the side, and in the time that it takes to blink, the rest of my body follows, the contact my skull makes with the floor feeling cushioned and far away. Slowly, the sounds of the crumbling building and the snapping flames fade away. Then, with the gentleness of silk, the warmth recedes, leaving a cold chill in its place, deeply set and unforgiving. My last breath falters in my chest, my consciousness fighting for just one more second, like a candle flickering in the wind. A soft exhale is all it takes to snuff it out.