Masuk~ ISLA ~"Shh... quiet. It's me," a deep, low voice rasped directly against my ear.The moment those words echoed through the dark, my entire body reacted. My heart didn't freeze in fear—it soared. My senses instantly recognized the undeniable warmth of his hands, the commanding, familiar force of his grip, and the faint natural scent of mint and cedar that belonged to only one man in this world.A single tear spilled over my lashes, hot against my cheek, as his name slipped past my lips in a trembling breath. "Alistair..."The dim yellow lighting of the bathroom flickered on above us. When I looked up, his striking face instantly filled my vision. His eagle-like eyes burned down into mine with an intensity so fierce that it took my breath away—raw, possessive, and thick with a dark, dangerous relief.I didn't wait another second. I threw my arms around his waist, burying my face into his sturdy chest, clinging to him as if he were the only solid thing in a world spinning out of contr
~ ALISTAIR ~"Dammit, Evan! What the hell are you doing?!" I growled through my teeth, my back slammed against the cold steel frame of the biometric door. The security alarms blared and red lights flashed across the entire facility the moment he tried bypassing the security code."I—I'm trying, Sir!" Evan's voice shook over the comms, the frantic clatter of his keyboard echoing in my ear. "I attempted a brute-force override on the sub-node, but Simon’s system is stacked with dead-man triggers! The moment my code hit the secondary firewall, it tripped an automated intrusion lock!""I don't give a damn about his firewalls! You just broadcast our exact location to the entire facility!"Rage burned behind my eyes—a silent, suffocating fury. Isla was right on the other side of this metal slab. If Simon realized we were pinned outside her wing, he wouldn't hesitate to execute her or inject her with that toxic formula before I could even reach her."I'm sorry, Sir! It's a hard-coded physica
~ ALISTAIR ~The low hum of the subterranean ventilation system vibrated through the floorboards as we crept along the sub-level service corridor.My weapon was raised, scanning the dim, industrial shadows ahead. In a hostile compound like this, carrying a firearm at a low ready isn't enough; every corner could conceal one of Simon's mercenaries, and split seconds dictate who survives. My index finger rested lightly against the exterior frame of the trigger guard—keeping my finger safely off the firing mechanism to prevent an accidental discharge while remaining ready to snap into a lethal shot at a fraction of a second's notice.To the rest of the corporate world, I was just Alistair Montgomery—the ruthless CEO who spent his life behind a desk, moving billions with a single phone call. But power in our world was never maintained through wealth alone. From the moment I was old enough to understand the dangerous weight of my family’s name, my father ensured I was trained for every wors
~ SIMON ~A few moments later, the door of my office swung open, and Dr. Allison Reed stepped inside.Her posture was rigid under her crisp lab coat, but I could see the underlying tension in the tight set of her shoulders and the dark circles under her eyes. She carried a leather-bound medical folder tucked tightly beneath her arm.I didn't bother offering her a seat. I simply sat back in my chair, steepled my fingers, and watched her walk toward my desk with an amused, sarcastic smile playing on my lips."Dr. Reed," I said, my voice was smooth and dripping with cold mockery. "To what do I owe the honor of this late-night meeting? I assumed you were in the lab preparing the neural compound for tonight's procedure."Allison stopped a few feet from my desk. She didn't flinch under my gaze. Instead, she placed the medical file squarely on the marble surface and met my eyes with an unwavering, icy focus."The current formula for the memory-wiping compound is dangerously flawed, Dr. Ellis
~ ALISTAIR ~The air inside the concrete drainage pipe smelled of damp earth, rust, and stagnant water. It was pitch black out here, save for the faint red glow of tactical displays and night-vision optics.We moved in absolute silence. I crouched low, stepping carefully through the narrow service shaft. Antonio was right behind me, his boots barely making a sound against the wet concrete, followed by five of our best elite operatives. Every muscle in my body was coiled tight. My hand never left the grip of my suppressed firearm.Isla was likely just above us, hidden somewhere behind the thick concrete slabs and reinforced steel walls, breathing the same air as that venomous snake. My blood boiled as the thought crossed my mind. Once I caught that bastard, I swear I'm going to put a bullet straight into his head.Just hold on, Isla… I'm almost there.We stopped at a heavy steel maintenance hatch at the end of the lower tunnel. This was the exact spot Antonio's underground contact had
~ SIMON ~I sat behind the polished marble desk in my private office, staring down at the sleek black smartphone resting in the palm of my hand. The screen had gone dark minutes ago, but Robbie Davis’s voice still echoed in my head“The specialized advanced medical equipment you requested just arrived ahead of schedule... I was thinking of bringing it over to your lab personally tonight.”I slowly spun the phone between my fingers, my eyes fixed on the empty air. Davis was an underworld supplier—a mercenary driven entirely by greed. He had been my supplier for a decade and had been particularly useful, but he was inherently weak. A man like Davis didn't volunteer to deliver heavy machinery in the middle of the night out of pure goodwill. He certainly didn't risk stepping into my sanctuary just to talk about a routine shipment face-to-face. Something wasn't right. The timing was too precise, the offer too convenient.Is Davis acting on his own... or is someone holding a gun to his back







