LOGINChapter 20: War CouncilThe safe house was no longer safe. News helicopters circled above the city. Police cars blocked the main roads. Federal agents waited at every Blackthorne property. The video signed with Elara’s mother’s name spread across every screen in the country.Elara sat at a long table in a new hidden location — an old warehouse Damien still owned under a different name. Jordan slept on a cot in the corner with Lily watching over him. Damien’s shoulder was bandaged. Marcus had a fresh cut on his head. The remaining trusted men stood near the doors.Damien placed both hands on the table. “We cannot run forever. The world thinks our son is a science experiment. Governments will take him if they find him. Private companies will pay any price. Criminals will try to steal him.”Elara’s voice was quiet but firm. “My mother is dead. I held her hand when she died. That video is a lie.”Marcus turned his laptop so everyone could see. “The video is real in one way. The f
Chapter 19: Mother’s GhostDamien drove as fast as the wet roads allowed. Elara sat beside him, one hand holding Lily’s, the other gripping her phone. The line to Marcus stayed dead. Every call went nowhere.“Faster,” Elara said.Damien did not answer. His face was set like stone. The safe house was still twenty minutes away.Lily spoke from the back seat, her voice small. “Who are these people, Elara? Why do they want your son?”Elara looked at her younger sister. Lily was twenty now, but in that moment she looked like the frightened fourteen-year-old from years ago. “I will explain everything when we are safe. I promise.”The car finally turned onto the long private road that led to the safe house. The outer gates stood open. No guards waited. Damien slowed the car. His hand moved to the gun under his seat.“Stay in the car,” he told both women.He stepped out into the rain. Elara ignored the order and followed him. Lily came last, staying close.The front door of the safe hou
Chapter 18: The SisterElara stared at the screen. Lily sat tied to a chair inside the old Blackthorne crypt. Her eyes were wide with fear. A gag covered her mouth. Blood marked one side of her face.Mabel stood beside her and smiled at the camera.“You have one hour,” Mabel said. “Come alone. Both of you. If I see any other person, she dies first. Then I release every secret about Jordan to the world.”The video cut off.Elara’s hands shook. “That is my sister. She is supposed to be safe. I sent her money. I kept her hidden.”Damien’s voice was hard. “Mabel found her anyway.”Marcus checked his tablet. “The crypt is on the old Blackthorne family land, two hours from here. It is isolated. Easy to trap people inside.”Elara turned to Damien. “We have to go. Now.”“It is a trap,” he said.“I know. But she has Lily.”Jordan stood in the doorway, listening. His small face was pale. “Aunt Lily is in trouble?”Elara knelt in front of him. “Yes, baby. But we will bring her back. You st
Chapter 17: BloodlineMorning light came through the clinic windows. Elara sat beside Damien’s bed while Jordan slept on a small cot nearby. Damien was awake and stronger than the night before, but the doctors still watched him closely.Marcus entered with a laptop and a dark look on his face. “The fire at the company building is under control. Three people died. The servers are gone. Your full research files are lost from our side.”Elara felt the weight of those words. “Then Mabel has the only complete copies now.”“She might,” Marcus said. “Or someone else does.”Damien sat up slowly, ignoring the pain in his side and leg. “Find her.”“We are trying. She has gone deep underground.”Jordan woke and rubbed his eyes. When he saw Damien, he hesitated. Then he walked over and stood by the bed.“Does it hurt?” the boy asked.Damien looked at his son. “Yes. But I will be fine.”Jordan nodded. “Mommy said you fought the bad man for me.”“Yes baby, I did.”The boy was quiet for a mome
Chapter 16: Aftermath and QuietRain still fell hard on the bridge. Damien lay on the wet wood, his eyes open but empty. The empty syringe hung from his leg. Elara screamed his name and crawled to him with Jordan still in her arms.“Damien! Look at me!”She pressed her fingers to his neck. His pulse was weak and fast. His skin already felt cold.Marcus reached them first. He pulled the syringe out and threw it aside. “What was in it?”Elara shook her head. Tears mixed with rain. “I do not know. Elias said it could stop a heart.”Jordan clung to her neck and cried. “Is Daddy dead?”“No,” Elara said quickly. “No, baby. He is not dead.”She looked up at Marcus. “We need a hospital now. The best one. Private. No public records.”Marcus already had the radio to his mouth. “Medical team to the bridge. Full emergency. Move!”Two more men helped lift Damien into a waiting vehicle. Elara climbed in with Jordan. She would not let go of either of them. The car raced through the night with
Chapter 15: The RaidElara stared at the syringe in Elias’s hand. The clear liquid looked harmless, but she knew it was not. Jordan’s small body shook against his grandfather’s chest. The boy’s eyes begged her for help.“Do not hurt him,” Elara said. Her voice was steady even though her heart raced. “I already gave you the files. Let him go.”Elias shook his head. “Not yet. First Damien leaves. All of his men. Now.”He pressed the tip of the syringe against Jordan’s neck. The boy made a small scared sound under Elias’s hand.Elara looked at the metal cuff around her wrist. She could not reach them. She could not fight. All she could do was talk.“Damien!” she shouted as loud as she could. “He has a needle on Jordan! Pull back! Please!”In the dark halls above, Damien heard her. He stood with Marcus and ten armed men. They had already taken down four of Elias’s guards. Blood marked the floors. The power was still cut. Only flashlights lit the way.Marcus spoke into his radio. “All







