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Chapter 13 - Secrets have teeth

Let me just say this real quick: I'm not dramatic.

I don't do panic, I don't freak out and I definitely don't spiral.

I plan, i execute and I handle.

But I stood in the middle of my room, knowing RedHalo had messed with my mission file, knowing they were watching me like I was some kind of lab rat waiting to explode. I wanted to throw something. Like, I don't know, a grenade.

Instead, I packed a bag.

Just essentials, burner phone, cash, lock picks, mini-flash drive, some protein bar, my student ID, and my most neutral hoodie. I pulled my hair into a tight bun, shoved everything in my backpack, and slipped out the back door.

No one saw me leave. Phew!

My Spy mode was activated.

It was almost midnight when I made it to the edge of campus.

There's this old maintenance tunnel near the east dorms that no one uses anymore. It connects to the old communication hub under the admin building, back when they used landlines and typewriters or whatever.

Most students don't even know it exists.

But RedHalo agents? We get the blueprint files.

I slid through the grate and dropped down into the tunnel. It smelled like dust and metal. My flashlight flickered once before staying on.

I kept walking till I could see something useful.

The communication hub looked like something out of a War spy movie. Rusted panels, cracked monitors, wires like spiderwebs. A perfect place to disappear.

And, lucky me, the system was still half-alive.

I powered it on it had a slow startup and an old code, ancient password system. It took me a few tries, but finally.

I was in.

RedHalo's files weren't easy to crack. They were encrypted under five layers of junk code and a biometric lock.

Too bad I still had my old admin bypass from my cadet days.

I was not supposed to keep them but who cares.

I started digging.

Most of it was boring, training reports, surveillance logs, weird receipts. But then I found it.

PROJECT HALOFOIL

Classified. Top-level. Tied to MY mission ID.

I clicked.

And the truth slammed into me so hard I couldn't breathe for a second.

RedHalo didn't just send me to recover an artifact.

They sent me to test the Vanellis.

To monitor how emotionally attached I became.

To track how far I'd go before breaking protocol.

This was never about trust.

It was about control.

I wasn't just the agent on this mission.

I was the experiment.

Worse?

There were notes in the file. About me.

"Subject shows signs of attachment to Cassien Vanelli. Monitor closely."

"Exhibiting resistance to isolation strategies. Consider emotional leverage."

"If compromise detected, activate next move: asset removal."

Asset removal?

That's code for wipe her out.

I stared at the screen, my throat went dry.

They were going to kill me if I got too close.

Too emotional and too… human.

I backed away, my stomach twisted.

And that's when I heard footsteps.

Behind me.

I turned fast, I carried my flashlight up like a weapon, and froze.

Cassien.

Of course it was Cassien.

Because the universe just loves to throw him at me whenever I'm at my most mentally unstable.

He leaned against the wall like this was casual. Like I hadn't just uncovered the biggest betrayal of my life. Like I wasn't standing there with tears prickling my eyes that I was trying to cover and a data drive full of proof that my agency wanted me dead.

"How long have you been following me?" I asked, voice way calmer than I felt.

He didn't answer right away. Just looked at me. Really looked.

"You're not the only one keeping secrets," he finally said.

I narrowed my eyes. "What's that supposed to mean?"

He stepped forward, slowly. Carefully. Like I might bolt or attack or both.

"I've known since day one that you weren't just some girl from another state with a full ride and anxiety."

"Then why pretend?" I snapped. "Why act like you didn't know who I was?"

He sighed, like I was exhausting him, which was rich considering HE was the liar here.

"Because they warned us," he said.

"RedHalo. Years ago. They said one day, someone like you would come looking. Someone trained. Someone dangerous."

My heart stopped.

"They contacted your family?" I whispered.

"No. They threatened us."

He looked me dead in the eyes.

"They said if we didn't hand over the artifact when the time came, they'd make sure our family name disappeared. Like we never existed."

And just like that, everything shifted.

RedHalo didn't just lie to me.

They lied to all of us.

Cassien walked over and shut the terminal down. Like he knew I couldn't bear to look at it anymore.

He stood next to me in the dark.

"I didn't want to play this game," he said quietly. "But if you're in it now… you better be ready to burn it down."

I looked at him.

And in that moment, I didn't care that he was arrogant or mysterious.

He was the only person in this mess who didn't lie to me tonight.

And that meant something.

We didn't speak as we climbed out of the tunnels.

Didn't speak as we walked back toward campus.

But when we reached the edge of the quad, he turned to me.

"You okay?" he asked.

"No," I said.

And that was the truth.

He nodded once. "Good. Means you're still in it."

Then he walked off.

I stood there alone, my heart pounded, my brain spun, and i whispered to myself:

"RedHalo doesn't own me."

Not anymore.

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