Nyra's fingers ached.
Not from coding, not from math, not from strategy but from hours of moving crates, checking shipments, recalculating losses, reorganizing logistics. Shark moved like a ghost beside her, silent, efficient, giving orders, watching her back.
"This route's compromised," he said, pointing at the map sprawled across the warehouse table. "Move the rest through 9th and Lanesford. And get the drivers doubled on lookout."
"Yes, Shark," Nyra replied, voice tight, sharp. Every detail mattered. Every second counted.
By midnight, the chaos had been tamed. Shipments rerouted. Missing merchandise recovered. Damage minimized.
"Not bad," Shark said quietly, leaning back. "You're good."
Nyra smirked, exhaustion in her eyes. "We're good. Don't forget it took me two days to calculate all contingencies."
Shark chuckled softly. Rare. She liked it. A brief warmth in a world that rarely allowed comfort.
The warehouse emptied. Engines started. Trucks rolled away.
Nyra exhaled, finally allowing herself a small stretch. Her locs clung to her sweat-slicked neck. Her body ached. But her mind? Sharp. Always sharp.
Then a sound.
A soft click behind her.
Instinct sharpened her senses.
Before she could react, a shot rang out.
Pain exploded in her shoulder. The world slowed.
She dropped to the floor, hand over the wound, blood warm and sticky. Shark was there in an instant, moving faster than thought.
"Nyra!" His voice was low, deadly.
Adrenaline kicked in. Her mind screamed but she fought to stay conscious, to stay alive.
Two men emerged from the shadows masked, armed. Shark's eyes flicked to them once. Then he moved, like a panther, fast and merciless.
The shooters didn't expect him.
Nyra felt herself lifted, dragged behind him as shots echoed around the warehouse. Her mind was racing calculations, escapes, contingencies but nothing mattered more than the sharp clarity of survival.
By the time she was out, pressed against the side of a truck, adrenaline burning through her veins, she looked at Shark.
"Did… they get anything?" she asked, voice shaky.
Shark's gaze was cold, scanning. "Nothing. They'll think they got to you. They didn't."
Her shoulder throbbed. Pain searing. But she nodded.
"Not… done yet," she muttered.
Shark's lips twitched faintly. "I know."
The night stretched long and dark around them. The streets whispered danger. And Nyra realized, no matter how skilled she was, some threats would always be one step ahead.
Her worlds were separate. She had kept ValeTech safe, shielded Adrian from this mess. But Eastside didn't forgive mistakes. And tonight had been a warning.