로그인[Natasha's POV]This was not an ordinary research facility. This was a fortress. I pulled the Audi several hundreds of meters back on the road, turning off the engine. It was very quiet there, and the cold air roared in my lungs as I stepped out of the car. I stood there for a moment, taking in the scenery. Letting the anger cool down to a numb feeling at the pit of my stomach. This was it. The end of the road. I took a photo from my pocket, running my thumb over the edges of the paper. Warm from the body heat. Come now.The night was good to me. I waited until the moon was covered by the clouds, creating long shadows that danced on the road ahead. I moved like a phantom through the woods, my boots crunching on the snow. The cold seeped under my skin, filling empty spaces, numbing the senses. I welcomed the pain since there was no room for anything else. Not weakness and certainly not doubts.The fence was a problem. Everything had its solution, even this. I walked the length of the f
[Natasha's PO V] I walked toward the altar, my hands empty. He relaxed, just a fraction. That was all I needed.I kicked the loose stone. It skittered across the floor, revealing a small, hollow space. A tiny, metal data drive lay inside.I bent down to pick it up.He moved.A blade flashed in the dim light, hidden in a sheath strapped to his wrist. He lunged, a fast, silent, deadly strike aimed at my back.But I was already moving. I dropped to the floor, rolling under the altar as the blade sliced through the air where my neck had been. I came up behind him, my own blade—his stiletto, the one I had taken from the tavern—in my hand.He spun around, his face a mask of rage and surprise. He was fast, but I was faster. I was a fluidity of motion he couldn't comprehend, a ghost of a memory he had never seen.I disarmed him, the stiletto skittering across the stone floor. I slammed him against the altar, my forearm against his throat."The book," I choked him. "You're not getting the boo
[Natasha's POV]He leaped back, instinctively, to avoid being crushed.It was the opening I needed.I didn't run for the street. I ran for the fire escape. I holstered my pistol and jumped, my fingers catching the bottom rung of the ladder. The metal was cold, slimy. I hauled myself up, my muscles screaming, my injured arm screaming louder.A shot pinged off the brick wall beside my head.I scrambled up the ladder, onto the landing, and then up the next flight of stairs. I was on the roof. The Prague skyline spread out before me, a sea of red-tiled roofs and ancient spires under a pale winter sun.I ran, leaping from one rooftop to the next, my feet finding purchase on slick tiles and ancient stone. I was a cat, a phantom, a blur of motion. The old Natasha was waking up. The one who could move like this, who could see the city as a map of possibilities, of escape routes and killing fields.I didn't look back. I didn't have to. I could feel him behind me. He was good. He was fast.I re
[Natasha's POV]She gestured with the detonator. "So, here's the new deal. You're going to walk out of here. You're going to Prague. You're going to get me the other half of the formula. If you try to run, if you try to contact anyone, if you fail… the boy dies. If I don't hear from you in 24 hours… this village disappears. A tragic gas explosion. And you, my dear, are the primary suspect."She was so sure of herself. So confident in her web of lies and threats. She had me cornered. She had my son. She had the formula. She had everything.She had made one mistake.She was still in the room with me.My eyes flicked to the side. The window. It was old, the frame rotted. The fire outside was raging, casting a hellish light through the glass. The boathouse was gone, but the fire was spreading. The heat was a palpable thing, pressing against the walls of the tavern.She saw my glance. "Don't even think about it," she said, her thumb pressing down, the button clicking, a tiny, fatal sound.
[Natasha's POV]I saw my path. Not through the barrel of a gun, but through the one thing she still wanted."I'll open it," I said, lowering the rifle slightly. A gesture of surrender. "But Ivan comes with me. Now."She laughed, a short, sharp bark. "You are not in a position to negotiate. You will do exactly as I say. You will go to Prague. You will retrieve the contents of box 732. You will contact me with the key. And if you deviate, if you even think about going to the authorities, I will kill your son. And I will make it last."The door to the kitchen burst open. The man she had sent to the pier stood there, his rifle raised, his face black with soot and rage."Kill her," the woman commanded.But I was already moving. I threw myself sideways, not away from them, but toward the large, heavy wooden table in the center of the room. I kicked a leg out, sending the table skidding across the floor, directly into the path of the man's line of fire.He fired, the bullets thudding into th
[Natasha's POV]He ducked back behind the corner of a building.I had seconds. The man on the ground was groaning, trying to rise. I kicked him hard in the head. He went limp. A stolen breath of time.I scrambled for the satellite phone, brushing the snow off it. The screen was dark. I pressed the power button. Nothing. It was dead. A bullet, a kick, the cold… something had finished it.Forty-seven percent. Was it enough?I didn't wait to find out. I ran. Not inland, where more of them could be. Not back to the pier, which was a dead end. I ran along the line of the buildings, toward the dark, open end of the village. The wind howled, a physical presence, pushing me, hiding me.I reached the last building in the row. A storage shed, its door hanging off a single, rusted hinge. I slipped inside, pulling the door as shut as I could. The air inside was thick with the smell of salt and old fishnets. I peered through a crack in the wood.They were regrouping. One was helping the other to h
[Natasha’s POV]"Does it mean I have 320 seconds to clear my mind?" I thought and started counting silently. "50.....170....201....240....300....318....319...320...." I can feel my heart beating fast and the air inside the room become colder. I took a deep breath as I started seeing things clearly.
[Natasha’s POV]"Let's go," he opened the car door from my side, a cold wind blew onto my face. I brushed off my hair strand and looked at him. "Hurry up, we have just 30 minutes. Step out." He said and extended his hand to help me off of his car. He pulled away after I was ready to walk on my own.
[Natasha's POV]“Answer my question first,” he demanded again. “Why were you enjoying food from his hand?”“Because he treats me nicely, unlike you and Celeb.” I don't know what to say, so I just made up an excuse. He stared at me again. When I didn't get the answer I stepped aside to open the door
[Natasha's POV]As soon as Damein left, I got up from the sofa and went to the bathroom to wash my sleepy face. The warm water helped my eyes to fully awake and brushed my teeth. I looked down at myself in the mirror when I saw I messed up my Tee. Accidentally, the toothpaste fell on my clothes. Si







