Chapter 63: Zero Point

 

The Atlantic Ocean. Unregistered Cargo Ship. Two Hours After the Fall of Vance Tower.

The helicopter didn't fly to a private island. It didn't have enough fuel. It landed on the rusty deck of a cargo ship smuggling electronic parts to South America. This was Liam's "Plan B".

Sebastian sat on a crate, watching the helicopter being pushed into the ocean by the crew. Splash. The machine sank. The last link to his old life was gone.

He checked his phone. No signal. He checked his bank accounts on the encrypted laptop. [ ACCESS DENIED. ASSETS FROZEN BY FBI. ]

He looked at his clothes. A bespoke suit, now ruined by soot and sweat. He looked at his legs. They were throbbing with a dull, persistent ache. He reached into his pocket for his pain medication. Empty. He had left the refill in the penthouse.

"We have nothing," Sebastian whispered, a cold realization washing over him. "No money. No IDs. No medicine."

Harper walked over to him. She was holding two bottles of warm water and a packet of dry crackers she got from a sailor. "We have these," she handed him the water.

"I can't buy a safe house with crackers, Harper," Sebastian snapped, his fear turning into anger. "Do you understand? I am the most wanted man in America right now. Without my resources, I am just... a cripple in a suit."

Harper didn't flinch. She sat down next to him on the dirty deck. "You're right," she said calmly. "Sebastian Sterling the Billionaire is dead." "He died in that tower."

She opened the cracker packet. "So, meet the new Sebastian." "He's broke. He's homeless. And he's cranky."

She broke a cracker in half and offered him a piece. "But he's alive. And he has me."

Sebastian looked at the cracker. Then at her. "How are you so calm?"

"Because I've been poor my whole life, Sebastian," Harper smiled grimly. "Welcome to my world. I know how to survive on five dollars a day. Do you?"

Sebastian took the cracker. He ate it. It was dry and tasted like cardboard. But it stopped his hands from shaking.

---

[The Lie]

Night fell. The ocean was black and endless. They found a corner in the cargo hold to sleep. It smelled of diesel and salt.

Sebastian leaned against a shipping container, trying to massage life back into his legs. "Harper," he asked quietly in the dark. "Back in the office... when you told Victoria you destroyed the Key." "Did you?"

Harper turned to face him. The moonlight from the porthole illuminated her eyes. She reached into her bra. She pulled out a small, silver micro-SD card. It wasn't melted. It was pristine.

Sebastian’s eyes widened. "You kept it."

"I swapped it," Harper whispered. "I threw a blank drive into the jet engine." "This is the real one. The Helios Code. The Cure."

"Why did you lie?"

"Because as long as Victoria thinks it's gone, she stops looking for it," Harper clenched the card in her fist. "And starts looking for us." "But if she knew we still had it... she wouldn't send police. She would send nuclear missiles."

Sebastian stared at the tiny chip. It was the only hope for his cure. But it was also a target painted on their backs.

"You dangerous woman," Sebastian breathed, a mix of awe and terror in his voice. "You saved us. And you doomed us."

"We'll sell it," Harper said. "Not to the Triads. But to someone who can actually help us." "There is a contact. Louis mentioned him. A geneticist in Berlin. The 'Black Market Doctor'."

"Berlin?" Sebastian laughed dryly. "How do we get to Berlin with zero dollars and no passports?"

Harper pointed to the crates around them. "This ship is going to Morocco. From there, we cross into Europe." "We are going to be refugees, Sebastian."

---

[The Withdrawal]

By dawn, the adrenaline had worn off. And the pain set in.

Sebastian woke up with a gasp. His legs were on fire. Not the usual ache, but a searing, nerve-shredding pain. The withdrawal from his specialized medication had begun. His body was convulsing. Sweat soaked his shirt.

"Sebastian!" Harper woke up instantly.

"It... hurts..." Sebastian gritted his teeth, curling into a ball. "My legs... feels like... burning..."

Harper grabbed his hands. They were ice cold. She knew this. Without the serum stabilizers Arthur had developed, Sebastian’s genetic condition would accelerate. He wasn't just in pain. He was dying.

"Liam!" Harper shouted, running to the door of the cargo hold. "Liam!"

Liam ran in. He took one look at Sebastian and cursed. "The withdrawal. It's starting."

"We need medicine," Harper said frantically. "Painkillers. Anything."

"We are in the middle of the ocean, Harper!" Liam checked Sebastian’s pulse. "The captain has a first aid kit. Aspirin and morphine. But morphine will only knock him out, not fix him."

"Get it," Harper ordered. "Knock him out if you have to. He can't suffer like this."

Liam ran to find the captain. Harper crawled back to Sebastian. She pulled his head onto her lap, stroking his damp hair. "Stay with me," she whispered, tears falling on his face. "Don't you dare quit on me now, Sterling."

Sebastian looked up at her through a haze of pain. "If I... if I don't make it..." he gasped. "Burn the card."

"Shut up," Harper kissed his forehead fiercely. "We are going to Berlin. We are going to find that doctor." "And until then... I will carry you."

She wrapped her arms around him, rocking him as the ship pitched and rolled in the dark waters. The Empire of Ashes was behind them. The long, hard road to survival had just begun.

(End of Chapter 63)