Everyone holds their breath as you answer.
"Hello?"
Static, then finally heavy breathing, as though someone is panting.
"Hello?" you try again. You see Addy roll their eyes, but they're still watching carefully.
"Petzeiros, I need you to—" Rex's voice says before erupting into more static.
"Put it on speaker," Anuja says.
As the call becomes loud enough for everyone to hear, the entire car is filled with anticipation and dread.
The static fades in and out as though you were listening to a radio station from a city that's just a little too far away.
Through the hissing, one word is excruciatingly clear. "Help!"
It sounds like Rex's voice beyond a doubt, and it sounds like Rex is panicking. His breaths are quick and loud, and he sounds scared.
"—caught up to me," you hear him say. "—got me, tried to drag me into it, it hurt me but I got away. Now I'm—"
"Now you're what?" you ask.
"Trying to run! Or hide, or something, I don't know what to do. I can't keep going on for much longer, I'm so tired. Petzeiros—"
His voice dissolves into static.
"It sounds like he's in bad trouble," Kirill says.