LOGIN# Chapter 26: The PartnershipViktor’s office overlooked the entire city.Floor-to-ceiling windows. Expensive furniture. The kind of space that announced power without saying a word. Damien sat across from Viktor at a mahogany desk that probably cost more than most people’s houses.“You look tired,” Viktor said, pouring vodka into crystal glasses.“I haven’t been sleeping well,” Damien said.“Because of the girl?” Viktor asked, sliding a glass across the desk.Damien didn’t answer. He just took the drink.“She’s a distraction,” Viktor continued. “But a useful one. She keeps you compliant. She keeps you thinking about consequences. Good. That’s exactly what I need.”Viktor stood and walked to the window, looking out at the city below.“I have a proposition for you,” Viktor said. “A business opportunity.”“I’m listening,” Damien said.“Your company, Cross Technologies,” Viktor said. “It has reach. Infrastructure. Connections across the globe. I want to use it.”“For what?” Damien asked,
# Chapter 25: ReturnDamien pulled into the mansion driveway at 5:47 AM.The sun was just starting to rise, painting the sky in shades of orange and pink. The house was still dark. Victoria would still be asleep. He had maybe an hour before she woke up and realized he’d been gone all night.He parked in the garage and sat for a moment, trying to compose himself. His shirt smelled like Mia. His lips probably still tasted like her. He needed to erase every trace of her before Victoria saw him.He went to his study first and changed clothes. Shower. New suit. Everything clean. Everything professional. Everything that said “I’ve been working all night at the office on important business.”He was coming down the main stairs at 6:15 AM when Victoria appeared in the hallway.She was in her silk robe, her blonde hair perfectly styled even though she’d just woken up. She looked him up and down, her eyes narrowing as she took in his appearance.“Where have you been?” she asked.“The office,” Da
“Hello, Damien,” Viktor’s voice filled the safe house. “I believe we need to have a conversation about what happens next.”Damien’s jaw clenched. He gestured for Jake and Dr. Vasquez to take Kevin into the back room. They left, closing the door behind them.“I’m listening,” Damien said.“You’ve been very clever,” Viktor continued. “The anonymous tip. The extraction team. Very resourceful. But ultimately, you’ve forced my hand. And now we need to establish some ground rules.”“What do you want?” Damien asked.“What I’ve always wanted,” Viktor said. “Obedience. Control. Understanding that you are not the one in charge here. I am.”Damien waited.“Here’s what’s going to happen,” Viktor said. “You’re going to stop this foolish rescue operation. You’re going to return to your life. Your marriage. Your company. Everything continues exactly as it was.”“And if I don’t?” Damien asked.“Then I make a phone call,” Viktor said. “My people are currently positioned outside Mia Chen’s apartment bui
Damien and Jake watched from the tree line about a quarter mile away.Police arrived at 2:47 AM. Multiple vehicles. SWAT team. The whole operation. They had the access codes Damien provided. They had the layout. They had everything they needed.“This is it,” Jake whispered beside him. “This is where it ends.”The police moved into the facility with tactical precision. Officers swarmed through every entrance. For ten minutes, there was silence except for radio chatter.Then the first officer emerged.Then another.Then more.Their faces said everything. The facility was empty.Damien’s stomach dropped.“No,” he whispered. “That’s not possible.”More officers came out. They were moving slower now. Less urgently. One of them was actually laughing. Laughing.An officer emerged carrying a large burlap bag. Then another. Then stacks of them.Fish food.Row after row of fish food bags stacked inside the facility. Nothing else. No medical equipment. No patients. No victims. No sign that anyth
Damien sat in his car outside Mia’s apartment building for ten minutes after leaving.He read the message over and over, each time feeling the walls close in tighter.“We know about the warehouse. We know about Jake. And we know you’re planning something stupid. Bring the girl back to the mansion by midnight tomorrow or Kevin dies. For real this time.”Viktor knew. He knew about Jake. He knew about the plan. Which meant the facility was compromised. Which meant Kevin was in more danger than ever.Damien’s hands were shaking as he dialed Jake.“Tell me you’re seeing this,” Damien said when Jake answered.“Yeah,” Jake’s voice was tight. “I got the same message. Five minutes ago. How is this possible?”“We have a leak,” Damien said. “Someone on our side is feeding information to Viktor.”“Or Viktor has surveillance on me,” Jake said. “Or both. Doesn’t matter. We’re blown.”Damien gripped the steering wheel. “What do we do?”“We move now,” Jake said. “Tonight. We can’t wait for Tuesday. T
Mia’s apartment looked smaller than she remembered.The furniture was worn, the walls bare, the kitchen barely big enough for one person. But it was hers. Or at least, it had been hers before everything fell apart.She spent the afternoon cleaning. Not because it was dirty, but because she needed something to do with her hands. Something to keep her mind from spiraling.She’d been free for three hours and already the weight of it was crushing her. Five months. She had five months to figure out how to gather evidence, how to expose Viktor’s operation, how to survive this nightmare.And she had no idea where to start.She was organizing her nursing textbooks when there was a knock on the door.Mia froze. No one knew she was here. Victoria had given her a car, dropped her off, and left. Damien didn’t know the address. Jake didn’t know. Nobody knew.She opened the door carefully.Damien stood in the hallway, still in his expensive suit, looking completely out of place in the cramped corri







