The Safehouse was unusually quiet that morning. 🌞
Feriha was checking the windows, Ravihan was organizing the decoded files, and Elisa sat cross-legged on the couch, sketching something on a piece of paper.
A sudden knock shattered the silence.
Eric froze.
Only one person knocked like that;three quick taps, a pause, and two more.
His chest tightened.
Maria. 🙂
He opened the door, and there she stood:
Maria, age 30, wearing her thick jacket, hair tied back, and eyes sharp with worry.
"Eric… finally."
Her arms wrapped tightly around him, the smell of home,coffee, old books, and her perfume;flooding him with memories he tried to bury. ☕
"You've been missing for three months," she whispered, voice trembling.
"Do you have any idea how scared I was?"
Eric swallowed hard.
"I'm sorry, Mari. I didn't want you involved."
She stepped back, her eyes scanning the room, observing every detail like someone who had been forced to grow up too early.
Her gaze landed on Feriha, Ravihan, and Elisa. 👀
"Who are they? And what exactly are you mixed up in?"
Feriha and Ravihan exchanged a look.
There was no hiding anymore.
They gathered around the table.
Elisa moved closer to Feriha, silent but alert.
Maria sat opposite them, hands folded, waiting. 👐
Eric took a deep breath.
"Before anything, you should know… this isn't normal. It's dangerous. And I didn't want you dragged into it."
Maria nodded, expression unchanged.
"Eric, I raised you. Since the day Dad walked out… and Mom turned into her ghost." 👻
Her voice cracked a little.
Flashbacks flickered behind Eric's eyes;
His father leaving, suitcase in hand 💼
His mother collapsing on the kitchen floor, then hardening into a distant, violent stranger
Her cold silences
Long nights when she simply vanished, claiming "social work" 📌
Maria holding him close, reading stories to keep him from hearing their mother screaming at empty rooms
Maria continued softly,
"I was the one who made sure you ate. Who made sure you lived.
So if you're in danger, I have every right to know."
Ravihan leaned forward.
"Then you deserve the truth." 🙃
One by one, they told Maria everything:
Selene's experimentations
Elisa being used
The Circles Gang
The mastermind Jankuwin 👸
Their infiltration plans
The risks, the near captures, the close calls
And how Eric saved Feriha more than once
Maria listened in silence, absorbing every detail with the calm intensity of someone who had handled trauma her whole life.
When the explanation ended, the room fell silent.
Maria looked directly at Eric.
Her voice was steady, fierce. 🔉
"You should have called me earlier. You're fighting something bigger than all of you.
And you're not doing it alone again. Not this time."
Eric blinked.
"Maria, no. This is too—"
She raised a hand.
"I'm not asking. I am telling you: I'm joining your team." 😐
Feriha smiled softly.
"You're brave."
Maria shrugged.
"I've survived worse than gangs." 😏
Ravihan nodded approvingly.
"We can use someone with your instincts. You're sharp. Observant. Protective."
Elisa tugged lightly at Maria's sleeve.
"Will you help me stay safe too?"
Maria's expression softened instantly.
"Of course I will." 😌
For the first time in months, Eric felt a weight lift off his chest.
His family;broken, wounded, scarred,was beginning to rebuild itself in the middle of chaos.
And now, with Maria's arrival, their team was stronger than ever. 🤝
A new force had joined them.
And Jankuwin…
had no idea what was coming. 😖