ログインChapter 143CELESTEAnd three minutes until help arrived.I heard footsteps behind me—they were closing in, coordinating a sweep that would eventually corner me.I needed a better position. Somewhere I could make a stand, somewhere I could hold out for three more minutes.The wine cellar.It was accessed through the kitchen, down a narrow staircase. Only one way in or out, which was usually a tactical disadvantage. But the door was solid oak, reinforced with iron bands—original to the house, built to last. And inside were racks of wine bottles that could serve as improvised weapons or obstacles.I sprinted for the kitchen, hearing shouts behind me as they spotted my movement. Bullets chased me across the tile floor.I reached the wine cellar door, yanked it open, and descended the stairs in three jumps. At the bottom, I grabbed the heaviest wine bottle I could reach and hurled it up the stairs.It shattered on the top step, creating a slippery obstacle of broken glass and spilled wine
Chapter 142CELESTEThe door exploded inward as someone kicked it. The dresser slowed them down, scraping across the floor but not fully blocking entry.A man pushed through the gap—mid-forties, professional military bearing, gun raised.I shot him.The recoil jarred my arms but my aim was true. The bullet caught him in the shoulder, spinning him around and sending his weapon clattering to the floor. He went down cursing, clutching the wound.Eight bullets left."She's armed!" someone shouted from the hallway. "Fuck, she actually shot Miller!"More gunfire erupted, this time directed at me. I dove behind the bed as bullets tore through the mattress, filling the air with feathers and fabric particles.I couldn't stay here. They had superior numbers and firepower. If I let them pin me down in this room, they'd eventually overrun my position and find the boys.I needed to draw them away. Make them chase me through the house, use my knowledge of every nook and cranny against their numbers
Chapter 141CELESTEI was pacing in the living room, my phone clutched in my hand, waiting for Miranda to arrive so I could go to the police station, when I noticed them through the front window.Three people in matching uniforms walking up our driveway carrying cleaning supplies. They looked professional, official, exactly like the cleaning service we sometimes used for deep cleaning.Except I hadn't called a cleaning service.And they were arriving on a Sunday morning.And something about the way they moved was wrong.I'd spent years working in the shadows of illegal business, buying trafficked victims from the very people who'd enslaved them, pretending to be just another customer while actually planning rescues. I'd learned to read body language, to spot inconsistencies, to recognize when something was off.And these people were definitely off.The one in the back—a large man with a duffel bag that was too heavy to just contain cleaning supplies—kept scanning the street like he wa
Chapter 140XENOIS*Good. Now you need to find a phone and call Dmitri. Get backup here before those people organize a proper search.*I looked around. The industrial area seemed abandoned—weekend, probably, which explained the lack of workers. But there had to be a security office somewhere, a building with a phone.I limped toward the nearest structure, trying the door. Locked. The next building, same thing.The third building had a window low enough that I could break it. I used the gun, smashing through the glass and reaching through to unlock the door from the inside.It was a small office—probably for a foreman or supervisor. And there, on the desk, was exactly what I needed.A phone.I grabbed it and dialed Dmitri's number from memory—one of the few numbers I'd made sure to memorize after the accident.It rang three times before he picked up."Hello?""It's me," I said, my voice rougher than I'd expected. "I need help.""Xenois! Jesus Christ, where are you? Celeste called, the
Chapter 139XENOISI strained my ears. Voices from somewhere above me—at least two people, maybe three. The sound of a television or radio. Normal sounds that meant whoever was up there didn't know I'd gotten free yet.*How far away is the exit?*I couldn't see one from where I was standing. The hallway extended in both directions, with doors on either side. I picked a direction at random and started moving, keeping the gun up and ready.*Your form is terrible. Adjust your grip—thumb forward, both hands on the weapon. And stop tensing up. You're going to shake yourself into missing if you have to shoot.*I adjusted my grip as instructed, and it immediately felt more natural. Muscle memory again, my body knowing what to do even if my conscious mind didn't understand why.I cleared three rooms—all empty—before I heard footsteps descending stairs somewhere ahead of me. Multiple people, moving quickly.*They know you're out. Someone must have found the guard. Get ready.*I ducked into one
Chapter 138XENOISI woke up with my head pounding and the metallic taste of blood in my mouth. My vision swam as I tried to focus on my surroundings—concrete floor, cinder block walls, a single bare bulb hanging from the ceiling. A basement, maybe. Or a warehouse.Definitely not anywhere I wanted to be.I tried to move and realized my hands were zip-tied behind me to a metal chair. My ankles were similarly bound to the chair legs. Professional work—tight enough to restrict movement without cutting off circulation completely. Whoever had grabbed me knew what they were doing.The last thing I remembered was leaving Bennett's apartment around four AM, getting into my car, starting the drive home. And then... nothing. A gap in my memory that probably corresponded to getting knocked unconscious.Fuck.I tested the zip ties, pulling against them experimentally. They held firm, cutting into my wrists. The chair was bolted to the floor—I could feel it when I tried to rock it. Whoever set thi







