***
Darkness hugged the edge of the compound like a predator waiting to pounce.
Jace and I crouched behind a ridge, breaths slow, steady—trained. Tristan's voice echoed faintly in the distance, muffled by the wind but unmistakable. Confident. Smug.
He always had that tone when something terrible was about to happen.
Theo's voice cracked in our earpieces. "Still have eyes on Roman. He's heading to the south wing. The one with the reinforced doors."
"That's where they're keeping Ivy and my mom," I whispered.
"Confirmed," Theo said. "Infrared shows two stationary figures inside. One more pacing. You've got less than twenty-five minutes before they initiate lockdown protocols."
Jace checked the clip in his weapon and slid it back in with a click. "Then we move now."
I touched his wrist before he could stand. "What about Tristan and the serum?"
He looked at me with something sharp and haunted. "We can't let them release it. Not again."
***
Ten Minutes Later
Inside the West Tunnel
We moved like shadows—silent, intentional. Every creak of concrete echoed like a scream in my ears. I gripped the cold metal of my handgun tighter.
When we reached the steel maintenance door, Jace tapped it twice, and Theo's override kicked in. The magnetic lock disengaged.
Click.
We were in.
Just ahead, through the half-silvered glass of a surveillance corridor, I saw her.
My mother.
Pale. Weakened. But alive.
Next to her—barely conscious—was Ivy. Her wrists were strapped to the arms of a metal chair. Her head lolled to one side, dark hair spilling over her face.
And the man pacing?
Tristan.
Holding the vial of black serum.
The same one rumored to erase identities. To program obedience. Turn teenagers into tools.
Roman Vale's legacy wasn't just lies and blood.
It was control.
***
"Ready?" Jace mouthed.
I nodded, heart hammering.
Three.
Two.
One—
We burst through the side entrance like hell had opened its doors.
"Step back!" Jace shouted.
Tristan spun around, but it was too late. Jace had him slammed against the wall with a forearm to the throat before he could lift the vial.
I rushed to Ivy and my mom, knife in hand. My mother flinched when she saw me, tears already streaking down her face. Ivy groaned as I cut through the restraints.
"Leah?" she whispered. "Is it really you?"
"Yes, yes, it's me—stay with me. We're getting you both out of here."
Behind me, Jace snarled, "Where's Roman?"
Tristan wheezed. "Already gone."
Jace pressed the muzzle of the gun against his chest. "Try again."
But before he could answer—
A siren blared.
Theo's voice cracked through our earpieces, "You've got hostiles inbound. Thirty seconds, maybe less. They know you're here."
I turned to Jace. "We have to go. Now."
He looked at Tristan, hesitating—then pistol-whipped him unconscious. "He'll be a gift for the feds."
He grabbed Ivy. I helped my mother. We staggered toward the exit—
Then everything exploded.
***
Flashbang. Fire. Screams.
Three guards stormed through the south corridor, guns drawn.
Jace ducked and fired. One dropped instantly.
I pushed my mother and Ivy behind a stack of crates and pulled my own gun.
Bang.
The second went down.
The third aimed at Jace—my heart stopped—
But Theo's drone dive-bombed from above, spraying sparks and static. Just enough distraction.
Bang.
Jace's bullet caught him in the throat.
Silence.
Heavy, dreadful silence.
***
"Go," Jace breathed. "We have a five-minute window. After that…"
He didn't need to finish the sentence.
Roman Vale might've fled, but he never left doors open for long.
We hustled through the service tunnel, emerging into the night just as the compound's floodlights flickered and rebooted.
An explosion cracked behind us—Theo had rigged the compound's surveillance system to self-destruct.
No more files.
No more ghosts.
No more proof.
***
Back at the Safehouse
3:19 A.M.
Ivy was sedated and asleep in the guest room. My mother lay in bed, her hand in mine, weak but finally safe. Jace stood at the window, shirtless, bloody knuckles against the glass.
"Roman won't forgive this," he said quietly. "He'll escalate."
"He already has," I murmured. "This was never about Ivy. Or even the Crows."
"It's about the past," he said. "What they buried. And what you are."
I turned to him, frowning. "What I am?"
He finally looked at me—and there was a new kind of fear in his eyes.
"The reason Roman kept your mom alive wasn't just because of her memories, Leah."
He stepped forward.
"It was because of you."
***
4:00 A.M.
The Truth
"Your father built the network," Jace said. "But he also built something else—a failsafe. A living key."
"What are you talking about?"
"Your DNA," he whispered. "You're the encryption. Every secret ledger, every backup file… they can only be unlocked with a biometric trace of you."
My mouth dropped. "That's why Roman hasn't tried to kill me. Why Savannah stalked me instead of just shooting me in the head."
Jace nodded grimly. "Because you're the vault."
"I don't understand—how?"
"Because your father programmed it. A blood-based encryption. The real 'ledger' isn't a file. It's in your body."
My stomach twisted. "So what? I'm a walking password?"
"No," he said. "You're the threat that can burn their empire down."
***
Later That Morning
I stood in the shower, scalding water beating against my skin like it could scrub away the past.
But some truths didn't wash off.
Jace joined me, arms circling my waist, pulling me back against his chest. I tilted my head, letting him kiss my neck, slow and reverent.
"I should feel broken," I whispered.
"You're not broken," he murmured, turning me around to face him. "You're becoming."
He lowered his mouth to mine, and I tasted fire.
He lifted me against the tile, his body pinning mine with strength and devotion.
There, under cascading water and thunderous hearts, we forgot the world again.
His hands slid down my back, cupping my ass as he thrust inside me.
I gasped, clinging to him, moaning into his mouth.
Every inch of him felt like salvation.
We didn't make love.
We survived together.
***
7:08 A.M.
Emergency Alert on the TV Screen
Theo barged into the room, wild-eyed.
"You need to see this."
He pointed to the news broadcast.
BREAKING: MYSTERIOUS DATA LEAK SHUTS DOWN HALF OF WESTVIEW'S ELITE ACCOUNTS. FBI LAUNCHES INVESTIGATION.
Then—
A video appeared.
Roman Vale.
On a yacht.
Laughing.
> "Hello, Leah.
I always said we'd dance to the same song.
You leaked a fraction.
But I still hold the last verse.
And when it plays…
Everyone you love dies."
Jace stepped forward.
I stepped beside him.
And I smiled.
Because the game wasn't ending.
It was just starting to bleed.