Chapter 160. I Love You

June POV

Tears slide down my face as Hermes tightens his arms around me, locking me against him like his body alone could stop the bomb strapped to my chest.

I try to push at him, but he’s immovable—too strong, too determined, too terrified.

“The detonator was fake!” someone shouts behind us. “It wasn’t wired directly to the vest—!”

My heart lurches so violently I almost collapse.

“I’M NOT LEAVING HER!” Hermes’s voice rips through the chaos. It’s raw. Ragged. Breaking.

I force myself to breathe. My hands shake. My knees feel like water.

“Hermes… please—go,” I whisper, but the word sounds drowned.

“I’m not leaving you,” he bites out, gripping my face like I might disappear.

I look at him blankly through tears. I can feel my legs giving out beneath me.

“P-please…” I choke out. “Let me go so they can work. If you want me to live—” My voice cracks. “Let me go!”

I’m angry—at the situation, at the fear choking me, at