The explosion threw Aurora backward, her ears ringing and her vision blurring. She reached out blindly, her hand finding the cold metal of a server rack. Through the smoke, she could hear the sounds of hand-to-hand combat—the grunts of pain and the wet thud of blows.
"Xavier!" she choked out, her throat burning from the acrid smoke.
A hand grabbed her arm, but it wasn't Xavier's. It was a grip of steel, cold and unforgiving. She was hauled to her feet and shoved against a wall. A silhouette stood before her, illuminated by the red emergency strobes. It was one of Xavier's own tactical team members—the man she knew as Jax.
"The Ghost sends his regards, Ms. Vance," Jax hissed, a combat knife glinting in his hand. "The 100 million was too much to pass up. Even Xavier Black can't pay that much for a single life."
Aurora's mind raced. She couldn't fight a trained mercenary, but she could outsmart him. She reached into her pocket, her fingers finding the small EMP pulse-device she had taken from the command center.
"Xavier trusted you," Aurora said, trying to keep her voice steady to buy time. "He took care of your family."
"Money is the only family I have," Jax sneered, raising the knife.
Just as he moved to strike, Aurora triggered the EMP. The device emitted a high-pitched whine, and the remaining electronics in the room—including Jax's night-vision goggles and the electronic lock on the door—exploded in a shower of sparks. Blinded and disoriented, Jax stumbled back.
Aurora didn't wait. She grabbed her laptop and ran toward the sound of Xavier's voice.
She found him in the hallway, standing over two fallen enemies. He looked like a god of war, his face streaked with blood and his eyes burning with a dark fury. When he saw her, the tension in his shoulders shattered for a split second.
"Jax is the traitor!" Aurora screamed.
Xavier didn't hesitate. As Jax emerged from the server room, Xavier fired. The shot was true, and the traitor fell without a sound.
Xavier grabbed Aurora, pulling her into a protective embrace as they ran toward the emergency stairs. "Did you get the cancellation codes?"
"I got more than that," Aurora said, clutching the laptop to her chest. "I got the names of every board member involved in the bounty. By tomorrow morning, Apex Solutions won't exist. And neither will the contract on my head."
As they reached the ground floor and burst out into the rain, Aurora felt a strange sense of clarity. She had survived the prison, she had survived the boardroom, and now she had survived the shadows.
Xavier pushed her into the SUV and slammed the door, shielding her with his body as they sped away from the burning building. He looked at her, his breath coming in ragged gasps.
"You're insane," he said, a dark laugh escaping his lips. "You actually did it."
Aurora leaned back against the seat, her exhaustion finally catching up to her. She looked at Xavier—the man who was supposed to be her enemy, who was now her only ally.
"I told you, Xavier," she whispered, her eyes closing. "I'm a survivor. And now, the hunt is over. It's time for us to become the hunters."
As the city lights blurred past, Aurora realized that her life would never be the same. The CEO of Phoenix Holdings was gone. In her place was something far more dangerous.