All Chapters of Betrayed Before the Vows: Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

The sky above Obersdorf was no longer the calm, crystal blue it once had been. That morning, gray clouds hung low, carrying the scent of imminent snowfall and a faint static hiss only trained ears could detect. Inside the research station—now home to two of the most wanted people in the world—William Thorne stood by a frost-clouded window. In his hand was a handheld frequency scanner, emitting short, irregular beeps.“There’s interference on the 2.4 gigahertz band,” William muttered without turning. “Not weather-related. This is military-grade encryption trying to ping the outer layer of our Lattice.”Camelia, seated at a long wooden table while sipping bitter herbal tea, set her cup down. The elegance of her Singapore silk had been replaced with thick wool knits and practical cargo pants, yet her gaze remained sharp enough to cut steel.“Sato or the banks?” Camelia asked calmly.“The banks,” William replied. “Sato would use elegant hackers. This is crude. Like a hammer searching for

The victory on the terrace of the Obersdorf research station was only a brief pause. William knew that Vance’s retreat was not a defeat for the Global Creditors Alliance, but merely a shift in tactics. In a world interconnected by digital systems, there was no place truly hidden as long as signals still reached the sky. “They’ll cut the satellites,” William said as he pulled a heavy wooden crate from beneath his worktable. Inside were not sleek electronic devices, but coils of thick, dull-black cables that looked like relics from the Cold War era. “The moment a court order from The Hague is issued, they’ll pressure internet providers to isolate these coordinates. We’ll be blind and deaf within hours.” Camelia studied the cables. “That’s why you chose this place? Because of its old infrastructure?” William nodded, a faint smile appearing on his tired face. “My father was part of a classified telecommunications project in the Balkans. They laid thousands of kilometers of fiber optics

“Don’t touch anything on this desk!” Camelia’s voice exploded the moment William stepped into the main control room.The entire room fell silent. Marko, who had been carrying a stack of files, stopped mid-step, while Stefan pretended to be busy staring at a monitor so he would not get involved. The system alarm ticked softly in the corner, adding to the suffocating tension that had filled the station since morning.William halted. In his hand was still the data storage device he had intended to connect to the central terminal. His face remained expressionless, but the look in his eyes turned cold.“I only wanted to repair the northern sector distribution line,” he said calmly.Camelia stared at him without softening in the slightest. “I said don’t touch anything. Starting today, all primary access goes through my permission only.”Marko cleared his throat softly. “Camelia, Will understands the core system better than anyone—”“Then he can explain from a distance,” Camelia cut in sharp

“I need a list of every transport route leaving Obersdorf tonight.” Camelia’s voice was flat as she threw a thin folder onto Marko’s desk in the administration room.Marko, who had been writing a report, immediately looked up. “Leaving? For what?”“Don’t ask too many questions. Just give me the data.”Marko studied her for several seconds. Over the past few weeks, Camelia had grown colder and colder. She worked longer than anyone else, rarely ate with the team, and almost never spoke unless necessary. Her face looked paler than usual now, yet her eyes were harder than ever.“If this is about a mission, I need to know the context,” Marko said carefully.“This is not a mission.”“Then it’s even stranger.”Camelia drew a short breath. “Marko.”The warning in her tone was clear enough. Marko gave in and opened the small terminal in front of him.“A freight train heading south leaves at eleven tonight. There’s also a logistics truck that sometimes uses the forest road before midnight.” He

Bab 7: Perlindungan Tanpa Pamrih Alarm darurat meraung keras di seluruh stasiun riset Obersdorf. Lampu merah berkedip di sepanjang lorong, memantul di dinding logam dan kaca beku. Suasana yang biasanya tegang kini berubah menjadi kepanikan terbuka. “Timur laut ditembus!” teriak Stefan sambil berlari masuk ke ruang kontrol. “Sensor pagar luar mati total!” Marko menoleh dari terminal utama. “Berapa jumlah mereka?” “Belum pasti. Minimal tiga kendaraan.” Camelia yang sedang memeriksa data distribusi spontan berdiri. Tubuhnya belum sepenuhnya pulih dari tekanan beberapa hari terakhir, tetapi naluri pemimpinnya langsung mengambil alih. “Kunci semua akses bawah tanah. Alihkan daya ke bunker kedua,” perintahnya cepat. Marko segera bergerak. Stefan berlari ke panel komunikasi. William masuk dari pintu samping sambil mengenakan rompi taktis dan sarung tangan hitam. Wajahnya keras, matanya tajam. “Mereka datang lebih cepat dari perkiraanku,” katanya. Camelia menatap layar kamera luar.