Fiona paced the length of the office, her mind racing as she replayed William’s ominous words. We’ll see about that. The threat lingered in the air, poisoning every moment of triumph. They had exposed him, but he was still out there, slipping through their fingers like smoke.Darwin stood at the window, arms crossed, his jaw tight with frustration. “He had this planned,” he muttered. “The money transfers, the shell companies, the private jet—it was all part of an exit strategy.”Thalassa scrolled through multiple screens, her fingers moving quickly over the keyboard. “I’ve tapped into every source I can. So far, no trace of where he actually landed.”Marcus rubbed his temples. “We need to consider the possibility that he’s headed somewhere without an extradition treaty. If he gets to Russia, the UAE, or even certain parts of Africa, we’re screwed.”Fiona stopped pacing. “He won’t run forever. William doesn’t just want to escape—he wants revenge.”Darwin turned to her. “You think he’ll
The silence in the safe house was thick with tension. Fiona sat at the edge of the couch, her hands wrapped around a cup of untouched coffee. The steam curled into the air, but she barely noticed. Her mind was racing. William was still in the city. That meant they still had a chance to stop him—but it also meant they were walking into his trap. Darwin paced the room, his jaw clenched. “We need to rethink our approach.” His voice was sharp and controlled, but the frustration was evident in his posture. Marcus, seated at the desk, tapped away at his laptop. “We lost track of his jet, but I found something else. He booked a private security team two nights ago. Highly trained. They specialize in extractions.” He turned to Fiona and Darwin. “He’s planning an escape, but not just for himself. He’s securing an exit strategy for someone else, too.” Fiona’s stomach twisted. “Bella.” Thalassa, standing near the window, let out a scoff. “Of course. She’s the only loose end he can’t afford
The air inside the Atlas Group’s underground security wing was thick with tension. William Newton lay unconscious on the floor, his breath shallow. Blood seeped from the wound Fiona had inflicted, but he was still alive. Fiona exhaled, lowering the gun in her trembling hands. The weight of what had just happened settled in her chest like a boulder. It wasn’t over yet—not until they knew the full extent of William’s contingency plan. Marcus knelt beside William’s unconscious form and retrieved the detonator Darwin had caught. His fingers moved expertly as he dismantled the device, removing the battery and disconnecting the internal wiring. “It’s safe,” Marcus announced. “He can’t set off anything now.” Darwin exhaled sharply, running a hand down his face. “We need to make sure there isn’t another bomb planted somewhere in the building. If William had a backup plan, he wouldn’t just rely on one detonator.” Fiona nodded. “Bella said he had something bigger in place. We need to find
The boardroom was silent long after Lawrence Payne was led away in handcuffs. Fiona exhaled, her hands gripping the edge of the table. The weight of what just happened settled over her like a suffocating blanket. They had taken down William, uncovered the mole, and secured critical evidence—but Lawrence’s final words lingered in her mind. "You have no idea what storm you’ve just unleashed." Darwin turned to Marcus. “Get me a full report on every senior official with ties to William. I want to know who else might be compromised.” Marcus nodded and walked out, his phone already pressed to his ear. Thalassa let out a sharp breath. “I don’t like this. If William wasn’t the real mastermind, then who is?” Darwin’s expression darkened. “That’s what we need to find out.” Fiona’s gaze flickered to Bella, who sat stiffly in the chair, still recovering from everything that had happened. Her expression was unreadable, but Fiona knew one thing—Bella had been William’s pawn, but she wasn’t t
Fiona’s hands clenched at her sides as Sebastian’s footsteps echoed through the parking garage. The shadows swallowed him, leaving only the faint hum of distant traffic. Her pulse roared in her ears. She had expected retaliation. But she hadn’t expected it to come this fast. Taking a shaky breath, she pulled out her phone and dialed Darwin. He picked up immediately. “Fiona?” “Sebastian Pierce was waiting for me in my car,” she said, keeping her voice even. “He delivered a message from the Echelon.” A pause. Then—“Where are you?” “In the parking garage under my building.” “I’m on my way. Stay where you are.” She nodded, even though he couldn’t see her. The call ended, and she leaned against her car, trying to calm her racing heart. The Echelon wasn’t just watching them. They were moving. --- A War Brewing Darwin arrived within minutes, pulling up beside her in his sleek black car. He barely parked before stepping out, his sharp gaze scanning the area. “Are you hurt?” F
The weight of Bella’s words hung in the air like a storm cloud. "The real leader of the Echelon… they call him The Architect." Fiona exchanged a glance with Darwin. If this was true, then they weren’t just fighting William anymore. They were up against someone far more dangerous. Someone who had orchestrated every move from the beginning. Darwin’s jaw tightened. “How long have you known this?” Bella hesitated. “A while.” Thalassa scoffed. “And you conveniently decided to share now?” Bella exhaled. “You don’t get it. No one knows who The Architect is. William was always the face of the operation, but someone else has been pulling the strings. Even William never met him in person.” Fiona frowned. “Then how do you know he exists?” Bella’s gaze dropped. “Because I saw the messages.” She reached into her purse, pulling out a flash drive. “I made copies.” Darwin’s eyes darkened. “You copied classified Echelon messages?” Bella nodded. “I needed leverage in case things went south.
The war room was silent except for the faint hum of the laptop screen. Fiona’s name. Darwin’s. Thalassa. Marcus’s. The Architect wasn’t just tying up loose ends—he was erasing them. Marcus clenched his fists, his knuckles white against the edge of the table. “We have less than 48 hours before this operation is in full motion.” Darwin’s expression darkened. “Then we hit them first.” Fiona exhaled slowly, trying to steady her nerves. “How? We don’t even know who The Architect is.” Bella, still pale from nearly plummeting off a rooftop earlier that night, leaned against the desk, her body visibly tense. She hesitated, then reached beneath her coat and pulled out a worn leather folder. “I might have a lead.” Everyone turned to her. Bella swallowed, sliding the folder across the table. “This was buried in William’s private files. I never thought much of it before, but now—” She took a shaky breath. “I think this could be our answer.” Darwin flipped it open. His eyes scanned the p
The moment the plane touched down in London, Fiona knew they weren’t safe. Not yet. The heist had been successful—too successful. They had everything they needed to take down Alexander Greaves, but they had also just declared war on a man who never lost. Fiona tightened her grip on the armrest as the jet taxied to a halt. “Stay alert,” Darwin muttered beside her, his gaze flicking toward the window. “Greaves isn’t the kind of man to let this slide.” Marcus unbuckled his seatbelt, already typing furiously on his laptop. “I’ve been monitoring his movements. He’s gone dark.” Thalassa raised an eyebrow. “That’s not good.” Bella let out a bitter laugh. “No, that’s terrifying. It means he’s planning something.” A heavy silence settled over them. Then, Darwin stood. “We move fast. We need to analyze the files and expose him before he gets the chance to wipe us off the map.” Fiona nodded, forcing down the unease twisting in her gut. They had started this fight. Now, they had to f
The Ravenport compound burned in the distance, thick black smoke curling into the night sky like a dark omen. Sirens wailed from far off, but they wouldn’t arrive in time. Morrigan’s empire—fortified with secrets, silenced voices, and betrayal—was falling. And Fiona stood at the edge of the cliff overlooking it all, wind tangling her hair, eyes unblinking.Darwin limped to her side, blood soaking through the sleeve of his jacket. He glanced at the burning facility below and then at Fiona. "We did it," he said.Fiona’s jaw clenched. "Not yet. Morrigan’s still out there."From the moment they entered Ravenport, they knew they were walking into a trap. Morrigan had prepared for their arrival, planting explosives along the perimeter and stationing loyal guards disguised as medics and engineers. But what she hadn’t counted on was Sofia regaining consciousness and feeding them a map—hand-drawn, shaky, but enough.Inside the compound, Thalassa and Marcus were still securing the data vault. T
The morning after their quiet moment on the balcony, Fiona woke to the distant hum of tension that had become all too familiar. The events of the previous night—the confrontation, the narrow escape from the stronghold—still weighed heavily on her mind. Yet, there was something more pressing now. Their next move, the one that would finally bring them face-to-face with Morrigan, loomed like an unspoken promise. The safe house, typically a place of refuge, now felt like a pressure cooker. Fiona paced the length of the room, her thoughts a whirlwind of strategies and concerns. They had been living on borrowed time for too long. Morrigan had always been one step ahead, controlling the narrative, pulling the strings from the shadows. But now the game has changed. And Fiona wasn’t about to let it slip through their fingers. Darwin’s voice, calm and steady as always, broke the silence. "We need to discuss our next steps." His presence was like an anchor in the storm that raged within her.
The night was thick with silence, but beneath it, an unsettling buzz hummed in Fiona's chest. She stood on the balcony of their temporary hideout, her hands gripping the iron railing as if the pressure could somehow steady her racing thoughts. The city sprawled beneath her like a sleeping beast, the lights flickering like distant stars. It was hard to believe that just hours ago, they had breached Morrigan’s stronghold, driven her back into the shadows, and nearly taken down everything she had worked for. Yet, despite the victory, the air felt heavy, like a storm was brewing on the horizon, and it had little to do with the danger still lurking in the wings. Fiona’s mind kept drifting back to Darwin. The last few hours had been a whirlwind—so much action, so much chaos—but the moments that lingered in her mind were the ones shared with him. The quiet ones, when he had let down his guard, and she had seen the man beneath the mask of the CEO. "Fiona?" The low, familiar voice pulled her
The sun rose over Zurich like a blade of gold slicing through steel-gray clouds. Inside the safe house, the world was still. The boy—Alex—lay curled beneath the thick blanket, his small hands clenched around the edge as if bracing himself for whatever might come next. Fiona stood by the window, watching the street below. There were no sirens. No helicopters. No immediate signs that their extraction had triggered global alarm bells. But the silence itself was suspicious—too calculated, too calm. “They're watching,” she said quietly. Darwin stood behind her, arms crossed. “You think they let us go?” “I think we took a piece they weren’t ready to lose. And now they’re deciding whether to recover it… or erase it.” Darwin’s eyes flicked to Alex’s room. “They built an entire system around him. That chair wasn’t just a monitor—it was a throne. And he was their king.” “No,” Fiona said sharply, turning to face him. “He was a prisoner.” Darwin didn’t argue. Marcus entered the room carr
The screen glowed faintly in the dim room, casting long shadows across Fiona’s face. Project Eidolon. The name alone sent a chill down her spine, but it was the word underneath—Ascension—that twisted something deeper in her gut. It didn’t sound like a simple codename. It sounded like a goal. Darwin leaned forward, brows furrowed as he scanned the documents. “These blueprints... this isn’t just tech infrastructure. It’s neurological. Advanced AI integration. Cognitive manipulation.” Marcus tapped through a few files. “This is way beyond anything Morrigan was doing. It’s years ahead—synthetic brain mapping, emotion prediction modules, even something labeled neural override. I don’t even know what that means.” Fiona spoke slowly. “I think it means control.” There was a long silence. Thalassa entered, looking exhausted, her jacket dusted with snow. “Interpol traced the remaining off-grid assets from Morrigan’s empire. Guess where the trail leads?” Fiona braced herself. Thalassa dro
The halls of the international tribunal were filled with murmurs and media flashes as Morrigan Zayne was escorted through its arched gates in handcuffs, flanked by federal agents. Her posture was upright—chin lifted, spine stiff—but even Fiona could see the cracks beneath the surface. The queen of shadows was finally exposed, her empire in ruins, and her secrets unraveling under the scorching light of justice. Fiona watched from the observation deck above, arms folded as reporters barked questions into the void. Every news station across the globe was tuned into this historic moment. The collapse of the Echelon, the fall of its most enigmatic leader, and the brave few who had torn down its walls. “This almost feels… peaceful,” Fiona said quietly, her voice lost in the buzz of cameras below. Darwin stood beside her, hands in his pockets, his expression unreadable. “Peace never comes without cost.” She turned to glance at him. His bruises had faded, but his eyes still carried the s
The twin engines of the stealth chopper whined softly as it descended beyond the tree line, slicing through the early morning mist like a blade through gauze. Fiona sat strapped in, her fingers curled tightly around the straps across her chest, eyes trained on the satellite feed on the mounted screen in front of her. Davenport wasn’t just a fortress—it was a statement. Built along the edge of a mountainous ridge and shielded by state-of-the-art surveillance, it was the last stronghold of Morrigan’s influence, carved out in steel and secrets. It was also the place where everything had started—and where it would finally end. “We touch down in five,” the pilot’s voice crackled through the headset. “Insertion team, get ready.” Darwin checked the chamber of his pistol and clipped it into place. “Remember, we don’t get a second chance at this. Our window is narrow. Foster’s jet was seen landing fifteen hours ago. We don’t know how long he’ll stay.” “Or what Morrigan’s planning,” Thalass
The private jet cut across the sky like a silver dagger, slicing through clouds on its descent toward Ravenport. Below, dense forests stretched for miles, a thick, green blanket hiding Morrigan’s last stronghold. The landing strip, built discreetly behind a series of abandoned warehouses and guarded by a private militia, was the only visible clue that something significant lurked in these woods. Darwin, seated beside Fiona, stared out the window, his jaw tight. Beside him, Fiona adjusted her black tactical jacket, her eyes hollow with determination. They weren’t flying in with an army. This mission demanded stealth, precision, and a level of danger none of them had faced before. “This isn’t a rescue,” Fiona said quietly. “This is an extraction. We go in, pull what we need, and get out before Morrigan knows we were even there.” Darwin nodded. “We identify what Gabriel Foster is doing there. If he’s meeting Morrigan, we document it. If they’re planning something bigger, we expose it.
The early morning light filtered weakly through the grimy windows of the temporary hideout. Fiona sat with her hands wrapped around a steaming mug of black coffee, her eyes fixed on the faded map spread across the wooden table. Red and black ink dotted the surface, indicating strongholds, escape routes, and key players loyal to Morrigan. Each mark told a story of manipulation, violence, and the thin web of power Morrigan spun so precisely. But that web was fraying. Across the room, Darwin leaned over a tablet, reviewing the footage from the hotel. Sofia Laurent was still alive—barely—but she had been moved into protective custody under heavy security. Her one whispered word had shifted the tide. Morrigan had gone from shadowy threat to active executioner in the eyes of those still sitting on the fence. And that changed everything. "They tried to silence her," Fiona said softly, her voice tight. "They almost succeeded." Darwin looked up, his expression grim. "But she didn’t die. A