Mag-log inScarlett: Pov The lab was silent.Only the faint hiss of damaged wires and the distant echo of alarms filled the air.Scarlett lay in Dominic's arms, her body weak from the electric shock.Every muscle ached.Her fingers still tingled painfully.But all her attention was on the woman who had just walked in.Tall.Elegant.Dressed in a dark tailored suit.Her presence carried authority.Power.The kind that made even the armed officers step aside.Evelyn's face had changed.For the first time since Scarlett had known her,She looked afraid.The woman's voice rang through the lab again. "Step away from the control platform, Evelyn."Evelyn's jaw tightened. "And who exactly do you think you are?"The woman's gaze was sharp. "Federal Investigations Bureau."She held up an identification badge. "My name is Helena Vaughn."Scarlett's pulse quickened.An investigator.Someone had finally come.But who called them?Dominic helped Scarlett sit up slowly.His arm remained around her shoulders.
Scarlett:PovThe alarm screamed through the central lab.Red lights flashed across the glass walls in sharp pulses.On the main screen, the countdown burned bright.NETWORK SYNCHRONIZATION,00:60Then 00:59Scarlett's pulse slammed against her ribs.Sixty seconds.Only one minute before every sleeping subject in the pods woke up under Evelyn's control.No.This could not happen.Luna rushed to the nearest console.Her trembling fingers flew across the controls. "There has to be a way to stop it."Victor leaned heavily against the wall, one hand still pressed to his wound. "Find the main override."Julian moved beside him, supporting him while scanning the room.Dominic's jaw tightened as he looked up at Evelyn. "You always choose control."Evelyn's smile was slow and cold. "Because control survives."Scarlett's hands clenched into fists.Not this time.The countdown dropped.00:48Scarlett ran toward the central platform stairs.Dominic caught her wrist. "Wait."She turned sharply. "W
Scarlett:Pov"Julian!"Scarlett's scream ripped through the observation room.On the live screen, Evelyn's gun was aimed directly at him.Time slowed.Julian had his back turned, locked in a fight with one of the guards.He didn't see it.Didn't know.Scarlett's heart slammed painfully against her ribs."No…"Her hands pressed against the glass console as if she could somehow reach through the screen.Then The gunshot echoed through the speakers.Camille gasped sharply.Luna flinched.Scarlett's breath stopped.The screen flickered violently.Smoke and sparks filled the corridor feed.For one terrible second, she couldn't tell what had happened."Victor zoom in!"Dominic's voice came low and urgent.Luna's trembling fingers moved over the controls faster than Scarlett expected.The feed sharpened.Scarlett's chest tightened.Julian was still standing.Alive.But Victor Her blood ran cold.Victor had thrown himself in front of him.Blood stained the side of his shirt.Julian's face c
Scarlett: Pov The corridor felt too small.Too cold.Too silent.Scarlett stood frozen, staring at the girl who wore her face.The same eyes.The same lips.The same expression of fear and confusion.It was like standing in front of a mirror that breathed.Her pulse hammered painfully in her chest.No.This wasn't possible.And yet she was there.Alive.Real.Human.Evelyn's slow clap echoed again through the corridor.A cold smile curved her lips. "Beautiful, isn't it?"Scarlett's hands clenched into fists. "You're sick."Her voice shook with anger.Evelyn tilted her head slightly, almost amused. "No."She took a graceful step forward. "I'm a visionary."Dominic's expression darkened beside Scarlett. "She's not a project."His voice came low and sharp.Evelyn's eyes shifted to him. "No, Dominic."Her smile widened. "She is the future."The girl,Subject Eight, looked from Scarlett to Dominic, then back again.Fear clouded her face. "You said…"Her voice trembled as she looked at Evel
Scarlett: Pov Scarlett stared at the screen.Her breath stopped in her throat.The girl in the photograph looked exactly like her.The same dark hair falling over one shoulder.The same sharp eyes.Even the small beauty mark near her jawline.It was like looking into a mirror."No…"The word slipped out as a whisper.Her hands trembled. "This can't be real."Victor replayed the file.The image remained the same.The label beneath it burned into Scarlett's eyes.SUBJECT EIGHT : ACTIVATEDJulian straightened from the doorway, his usual sarcasm gone. "That's… impossible."Camille slowly shook her head. "She looks just like you."Scarlett's chest tightened painfully.Dominic, weak but awake, pushed himself up slightly against the pillows.His voice came out low and rough. "Zoom in."Victor enlarged the image.The girl's face filled the screen.Scarlett took a shaky step backward.No.This wasn't resemblance.This was exact.Like a copy.Like someone had taken her face and given it anothe
Scarlett: POV "Dominic!"Scarlett dropped to her knees in the middle of the courtyard, catching him before his body hit the ground.The first light of dawn spread across the campus, but to her, the world had gone dark.Blood stained her hands.Her breathing came fast and uneven."Dominic, look at me."Her voice shook.No response.His face had gone pale, the sharp strength in his features replaced by a frightening stillness.Scarlett's chest tightened so hard it hurt.No.He couldn't leave her.Not now.Not after everything.Victor rushed forward first, dropping beside them. "Let me see."Scarlett moved slightly, tears burning in her eyes.Victor pressed his hand near Dominic's wound.His expression hardened. "The bullet went through."Scarlett's pulse quickened. "Is that good?"Julian, breathless from running, crouched on the other side. "It means it didn't stay inside."Camille knelt beside Scarlett and pulled off her jacket. "Press this here."Scarlett obeyed immediately, pressing







