Chapter 18 — The Reckoning
The storm had swallowed the coast entirely. Thunder rolled like cannon fire as Adrian and Eli emerged from the tunnel, soaked and breathless. The safehouse behind them was a ruin — half-collapsed, flames licking the rain-soaked air.
Adrian scanned the forest ahead. "There's a service cabin three clicks east. If we reach it, we can contact my source."
Eli followed in silence, his mind a battlefield. You were supposed to kill me. The words replayed over and over until they felt like a heartbeat. Yet despite everything — despite the lies — he still found himself moving toward Adrian, not away.
Branches whipped against their faces as they ran. The path narrowed into mud and roots, every step heavy with exhaustion. Eli stumbled once, and Adrian caught him instantly.
"Careful."
"Why do you still care?" Eli's voice cracked. "After everything?"
Adrian didn't let go. "Because I stopped being their weapon the day I couldn't pull the trigger."
Eli stared at him, rain dripping from his lashes. "Then what am I to you, Adrian? A mistake you're trying to fix?"
For a heartbeat, Adrian looked almost undone. "No," he said hoarsely. "You're the only thing I ever did right."
The words silenced the storm for a moment.
Eli wanted to believe him — God, he did — but the ache in his chest was too deep.
Before he could answer, a gunshot cracked through the trees. Bark exploded near his head.
"Down!" Adrian shoved him to the ground and returned fire, bullets slicing through the rain. Shadows moved between the trees — silent, precise. Trained killers.
Eli covered his head as Adrian emptied his clip, reloaded, and advanced, his movements clean and merciless. It was the man he'd tried to forget — the soldier, the assassin, the ghost. And this time, Eli couldn't look away.
When the last body fell, the forest went still again.
Adrian lowered his gun, breathing hard. "We have to keep moving."
Eli nodded numbly. But as they reached the ridge, a faint buzz came from Adrian's pocket.
Another message.
> Too slow. You're running out of places to hide.
Adrian's grip tightened around the phone until it cracked. "They're tracking my signal."
Eli looked up at him, voice trembling. "Then destroy it."
Adrian's gaze softened — just barely. "If I do, we lose any way to see them coming."
Eli stepped closer, their faces inches apart despite the chaos. "Then stop running."
Adrian froze.
"You said you're tired of it," Eli whispered. "Then let's stop."
For the first time, Adrian looked uncertain — like the idea of surrender terrified him more th
an death.
Then he nodded once. "Alright. We end it."