Chapter 45: Personal

Chapter 45: Personal           The flight back felt endless for Valerian. He sat rigid beside Noelle while his eyes remained locked on her pale face, watching each shallow rise and fall of her chest. The steady thrum of the helicopter blades above them did little to mask the faint, ragged sound of her breathing, wet from the blood filling her lung. Viktor worked quickly, securing bandages against the wound to slow the bleeding, injecting stabilizers into her system, but Valerian barely registered it. His mind was in a chaos.   Noelle was losing too much blood.   If they didn't land soon...   "Босс, мы на месте." (Boss, we're here.)   The pilot's voice cut through the headset, bringing Valerian back to the present. He tore his gaze away from Noelle just long enough to glance out the window.   The helicopter descended onto the rooftop helipad of the Russian mafia's headquarters, its powerful rotors slicing through the cold morning air. The towering fortress of steel and glass loomed over