The fires still burned in the ruins of Volkov’s compound. Smoke coiled into the night sky, thick and black, a funeral pyre for the last remnants of the Council.Lena stood on the edge of the wreckage, staring at the devastation. The scent of gunpowder, charred stone, and blood filled the air. Somewhere beneath the rubble lay Katarina Volkov’s body, but Lena didn’t bother digging for it. She didn’t need confirmation. She knew.Michael pulled a crushed cigarette from his pocket and lit it with unsteady hands. “Well,” he muttered, taking a long drag. “That was fun.”Jessica’s voice came over the comms, static cutting through. “Jesus Christ, Lena. Are you two alive?”Michael grinned. “Define ‘alive.’”Lena pressed a finger to her earpiece. “We’re fine. Volkov’s dead.”Jessica exhaled. “And the rest of the compound?”Lena glanced over the burning wreckage. The place had been built to withstand wars, but even the strongest fortress couldn’t survive a well-placed detonation and two people wi
Darkness.Not the kind that came with the night, but the kind that settled inside your bones. The kind that wrapped around your mind like a noose, pulling tighter with every breath.Lena’s world flickered between consciousness and the void, her body weightless, drifting.She could hear voices—muffled, distant.A low hum. Machinery.The sharp, sterile scent of metal and antiseptic.Then—pain.A sudden, searing pain in her skull, as if someone had reached inside and tried to peel her mind apart.Her eyes snapped open.Bright lights.A white ceiling.Strapped to a metal chair, wrists bound, ankles locked in place.Her body ached—not just from the fight, but from whatever the hell they had done to her.A slow, deliberate voice cut through the haze."Welcome back, Ms. Thompson."Lena’s vision focused.The man in black.The one from the mountain. The one who had walked through fire and bodies like he owned the battlefield.She blinked against the light, her throat dry. "Where’s Michael?"Th
Lena had spent her entire life fighting men like Jonas Cain.People who wore power like a second skin, who spoke in carefully measured words that concealed knives, who thought in strategies and contingencies instead of emotions and morals.And now, one of them was sitting across from her, watching, waiting.Testing her.She wouldn’t break.Not here. Not now.Even as the image of Michael—beaten, bound, bloodied—sat in front of her, printed neatly on a classified document, a hostage in a war she thought she had already won.Cain tapped his fingers against the table, a lazy, almost amused rhythm. “You’ve gone quiet.”Lena didn’t respond. She was thinking. Calculating. Weighing options.None of them were good.Cain exhaled, flipping through the file. “You know, when we were tracking your little crusade, there was a lot of internal debate about what to do with you.”Lena narrowed her eyes. “Internal debate?”Cain smiled. “Oh yes. Some thought you were just another whistleblower. An idealis
Lena Thompson had spent her life fighting against power.Now, for the first time, someone was offering it to her.Jonas Cain sat across from her, perfectly composed, watching, waiting. He had already said what he needed to say. He had already laid out the choice in front of her.And Lena?Lena was running out of time.Michael was still being held somewhere in this facility. Jessica was on the run, hunted. And she was strapped to a steel chair in a windowless room, listening to a man who could erase her with a single command.The offer was simple."Help us rebuild the world you broke, or watch everything you love burn."It was a trap. A trick. A game she refused to play.And yet—Cain wasn’t wrong.She had spent months dismantling the Council, exposing its corruption, tearing apart the system that had controlled governments, economies, and lives.And what had it left behind?Chaos.A power vacuum that was already being filled with worse things.Cain had expected her to realize it event
Lena Thompson had spent her life fighting people like Jonas Cain.People who operated in the shadows, who moved the world’s pieces like a chessboard, who saw destruction not as an end but as a beginning.Now she was staring one of them in the face, and he was offering her something she never imagined.A seat at the table."You’ve spent your life fighting power," Cain had said. "Now you have the chance to wield it."The pen sat on the table between them.A simple object. A simple choice."Sign, and you live. Refuse, and you die."Lena’s breath was slow, controlled. This wasn’t just a decision about survival.This was about who she would become.Cain watched her carefully, his expression unreadable. He had already said what he needed to say. The world was already burning, and if Lena didn’t step in, someone else would.She could let the system rebuild itself in secrecy, just as it had before.Or she could be the one to reshape it herself.She clenched her jaw.Cain smirked. “You’re stil
Lena Thompson had spent her life believing she was fighting the good fight.Exposing the corrupt. Tearing down the powerful. Bringing justice to the untouchable.But now?Now, she wasn’t sure if she had ever really been in control at all.Because the moment she signed that paper, she knew—She had crossed the line.Cain watched her with that knowing smirk, the faintest gleam of amusement in his eyes. He had already won.And Lena?She had just made sure of it.Michael’s ReleaseSomewhere in the depths of the underground facility, Michael Carter was shackled to a metal chair, blood drying on the side of his face.His ribs ached, his vision was blurry, and his patience was running dangerously thin.The door hissed open, and two men entered.No words.Just a key slipping into the lock.The cuffs around his wrists and ankles clicked open.Michael frowned, rubbing his bruised skin.No one had spoken. No one had told him what the hell was happening.He glanced up at the guards. "What, no mor
Lena Thompson had made the deal.She had signed the contract.She had crossed the line.But now?Now they were asking her to do the one thing she couldn’t.Jessica Ramirez’s face stared back at her from the file in front of her. A standard dossier—black-and-white photo, known aliases, last known locations, skills assessment.It was cold. Clinical.Like she was just another name on a list.But she wasn’t.She was Jessica.And that meant Lena had exactly twenty-four hours to decide if she was going to become a killer… or if she was going to burn this entire thing to the ground.Cain had given her the illusion of control, the promise of power, the idea that she was making a choice.But this?This wasn’t a choice.This was a test.And she wasn’t going to play their game.Not like this.Not with Jessica’s life on the line.Michael's HuntMichael Carter wasn’t a strategist.He wasn’t a hacker, a spy, or a master manipulator.He was a soldier.And when the enemy took something from him, he d
Lena Thompson had spent her entire life fighting men like Jonas Cain.Men who spoke in controlled tones, who never raised their voices, because they never had to.Men who built entire systems of power and sat back while the world danced on their strings.But now?Now she wasn’t fighting them anymore.Now she was hunting them.Michael stood beside her in the dimly lit corridor, gun in hand, eyes sharp and unreadable.They had only seconds before Cain’s forces regrouped.Lena checked the stolen sidearm. Fully loaded.Michael adjusted his grip. “You ready for this?”Lena exhaled. Steady. Cold.“No.”Michael smirked. “Good. Let’s go.”And then they moved.The alarms screamed through the underground facility, red lights flashing against the steel walls, casting everything in a hellish glow.They had only made it two corridors before the first wave hit.Armed soldiers in tactical gear—Cain’s elite.Michael fired first, dropping the lead man before he could get a shot off.Lena moved instinc
Lena Thompson had always believed in choices.The choice to fight. The choice to expose the truth. The choice to walk away.But standing in front of the control panel that dictated the balance of global power, she realized something horrifying.This was never about choices.This was about who controlled them.And now, for the first time in her life, she was holding the pen.The maps on the screen shifted, data streams pouring in like a living organism. Military operations. Government directives. Economic collapses. Entire nations blinking in and out of control, waiting for a single command to decide their fate.And Lena?Lena had just pressed the button.Behind her, Michael hadn’t moved.Because he wasn’t just looking at her.He was looking at the moment she became something else.Someone else.Jonas Cain, the architect of this entire game, stood off to the side, silent, letting the weight of her actions settle.Then, he smiled.“You finally see it, don’t you?”Lena didn’t answer.Bec
Lena Thompson had spent her life fighting against the system.Now, for the first time, she was about to decide its future.The USB drive felt small in her hand, but she knew better.It wasn’t just a piece of plastic and circuitry.It was leverage.It was a weapon.It was a test.And if she played it wrong, Jessica would die.Michael stood tense beside her, gun in hand, every muscle in his body coiled like a spring. His breathing was sharp, barely controlled, his eyes locked on Cain.Jessica’s voice still echoed in Lena’s earpiece. Weakened. Strained."Lena… don’t let him win."Lena’s throat tightened.Jessica had always trusted her to do the right thing.But what if the right thing didn’t exist anymore?The Weight of a ChoiceJonas Cain stood motionless, watching her, waiting. He wasn’t pushing her. He wasn’t rushing.Because he knew.He knew she was already thinking like him.The moment she picked up the USB, she had stepped into his world.“You have minutes before the rest of my sec
Lena Thompson had spent her entire life fighting men like Jonas Cain.Men who spoke in controlled tones, who never raised their voices, because they never had to.Men who built entire systems of power and sat back while the world danced on their strings.But now?Now she wasn’t fighting them anymore.Now she was hunting them.Michael stood beside her in the dimly lit corridor, gun in hand, eyes sharp and unreadable.They had only seconds before Cain’s forces regrouped.Lena checked the stolen sidearm. Fully loaded.Michael adjusted his grip. “You ready for this?”Lena exhaled. Steady. Cold.“No.”Michael smirked. “Good. Let’s go.”And then they moved.The alarms screamed through the underground facility, red lights flashing against the steel walls, casting everything in a hellish glow.They had only made it two corridors before the first wave hit.Armed soldiers in tactical gear—Cain’s elite.Michael fired first, dropping the lead man before he could get a shot off.Lena moved instinc
Lena Thompson had made the deal.She had signed the contract.She had crossed the line.But now?Now they were asking her to do the one thing she couldn’t.Jessica Ramirez’s face stared back at her from the file in front of her. A standard dossier—black-and-white photo, known aliases, last known locations, skills assessment.It was cold. Clinical.Like she was just another name on a list.But she wasn’t.She was Jessica.And that meant Lena had exactly twenty-four hours to decide if she was going to become a killer… or if she was going to burn this entire thing to the ground.Cain had given her the illusion of control, the promise of power, the idea that she was making a choice.But this?This wasn’t a choice.This was a test.And she wasn’t going to play their game.Not like this.Not with Jessica’s life on the line.Michael's HuntMichael Carter wasn’t a strategist.He wasn’t a hacker, a spy, or a master manipulator.He was a soldier.And when the enemy took something from him, he d
Lena Thompson had spent her life believing she was fighting the good fight.Exposing the corrupt. Tearing down the powerful. Bringing justice to the untouchable.But now?Now, she wasn’t sure if she had ever really been in control at all.Because the moment she signed that paper, she knew—She had crossed the line.Cain watched her with that knowing smirk, the faintest gleam of amusement in his eyes. He had already won.And Lena?She had just made sure of it.Michael’s ReleaseSomewhere in the depths of the underground facility, Michael Carter was shackled to a metal chair, blood drying on the side of his face.His ribs ached, his vision was blurry, and his patience was running dangerously thin.The door hissed open, and two men entered.No words.Just a key slipping into the lock.The cuffs around his wrists and ankles clicked open.Michael frowned, rubbing his bruised skin.No one had spoken. No one had told him what the hell was happening.He glanced up at the guards. "What, no mor
Lena Thompson had spent her life fighting people like Jonas Cain.People who operated in the shadows, who moved the world’s pieces like a chessboard, who saw destruction not as an end but as a beginning.Now she was staring one of them in the face, and he was offering her something she never imagined.A seat at the table."You’ve spent your life fighting power," Cain had said. "Now you have the chance to wield it."The pen sat on the table between them.A simple object. A simple choice."Sign, and you live. Refuse, and you die."Lena’s breath was slow, controlled. This wasn’t just a decision about survival.This was about who she would become.Cain watched her carefully, his expression unreadable. He had already said what he needed to say. The world was already burning, and if Lena didn’t step in, someone else would.She could let the system rebuild itself in secrecy, just as it had before.Or she could be the one to reshape it herself.She clenched her jaw.Cain smirked. “You’re stil
Lena Thompson had spent her life fighting against power.Now, for the first time, someone was offering it to her.Jonas Cain sat across from her, perfectly composed, watching, waiting. He had already said what he needed to say. He had already laid out the choice in front of her.And Lena?Lena was running out of time.Michael was still being held somewhere in this facility. Jessica was on the run, hunted. And she was strapped to a steel chair in a windowless room, listening to a man who could erase her with a single command.The offer was simple."Help us rebuild the world you broke, or watch everything you love burn."It was a trap. A trick. A game she refused to play.And yet—Cain wasn’t wrong.She had spent months dismantling the Council, exposing its corruption, tearing apart the system that had controlled governments, economies, and lives.And what had it left behind?Chaos.A power vacuum that was already being filled with worse things.Cain had expected her to realize it event
Lena had spent her entire life fighting men like Jonas Cain.People who wore power like a second skin, who spoke in carefully measured words that concealed knives, who thought in strategies and contingencies instead of emotions and morals.And now, one of them was sitting across from her, watching, waiting.Testing her.She wouldn’t break.Not here. Not now.Even as the image of Michael—beaten, bound, bloodied—sat in front of her, printed neatly on a classified document, a hostage in a war she thought she had already won.Cain tapped his fingers against the table, a lazy, almost amused rhythm. “You’ve gone quiet.”Lena didn’t respond. She was thinking. Calculating. Weighing options.None of them were good.Cain exhaled, flipping through the file. “You know, when we were tracking your little crusade, there was a lot of internal debate about what to do with you.”Lena narrowed her eyes. “Internal debate?”Cain smiled. “Oh yes. Some thought you were just another whistleblower. An idealis
Darkness.Not the kind that came with the night, but the kind that settled inside your bones. The kind that wrapped around your mind like a noose, pulling tighter with every breath.Lena’s world flickered between consciousness and the void, her body weightless, drifting.She could hear voices—muffled, distant.A low hum. Machinery.The sharp, sterile scent of metal and antiseptic.Then—pain.A sudden, searing pain in her skull, as if someone had reached inside and tried to peel her mind apart.Her eyes snapped open.Bright lights.A white ceiling.Strapped to a metal chair, wrists bound, ankles locked in place.Her body ached—not just from the fight, but from whatever the hell they had done to her.A slow, deliberate voice cut through the haze."Welcome back, Ms. Thompson."Lena’s vision focused.The man in black.The one from the mountain. The one who had walked through fire and bodies like he owned the battlefield.She blinked against the light, her throat dry. "Where’s Michael?"Th