Novels by Golden Swizz

Kael crouched on the edge of a tiled roof, eyes scanning the narrow street below. A courier moved with purpose, unaware he carried more than letters—he carried secrets Kael needed. Secrets that could expose the council’s entire network. Kael’s hands itched, his mind racing. Every step he had taken so far, every ally saved, every trap laid, had led to this moment.“Kael… are you sure?” Seris’s whisper came from the shadows beside him. Her eyes were sharp, scanning the rooftops above and the streets below. “We can’t risk getting caught.”Kael didn’t answer immediately. His mind traced every patrol pattern, every alley, every shadow. “We have to,” he said finally, voice low, steady. “If he delivers this, the council knows everything we’ve done. We can’t let him leave.”Daren shifted behind him, rubbing the sore muscle in his side where a splinter had nicked him last night. “I don’t like it,” he muttered. “I don’t like risking—everything.”Kael’s jaw tightened. “You never like risk. You s

Kael crouched in the corner of the hidden safehouse, listening. The city hummed faintly outside, but inside, every footstep, every whisper echoed. Daren was pacing, fingers fidgeting, trying to distract himself from the gnawing anxiety that had taken root in his chest. Seris sat near the map, tracing patrol routes with her finger, eyes narrowed in concentration.“We can’t stay here long,” Kael said, voice low, deliberate. “The scout we saw—the one from before—they’ll report. They already know this place exists.”Daren’s shoulders slumped. “Then where do we go? Everywhere we move, they could be waiting.”Kael’s jaw tightened. “We go where they expect the least. But it’s not enough to move. We have to mislead them. Create shadows, misdirection, footprints that vanish before anyone follows.”Seris’s head lifted. “And if the council’s eyes are everywhere? What if this entire city is their trap?”Kael’s mind flickered with memories, calculations, every scenario he had run through countless

Kael pressed his back against the cold brick wall, listening. Every heartbeat sounded too loud in his own ears. Daren crouched beside him, trembling, trying to keep his composure. Seris’s eyes scanned the street ahead, sharp and unblinking.“They’ve stationed more than I thought,” Kael muttered, voice low. “Patrols, scouts, informants. Someone knows we’re moving.”Daren swallowed hard. “Then how do we get in without being caught?”Kael’s mind raced. The safehouse wasn’t just a building. It was a network of forgotten paths, old passages beneath the city, and loopholes carved out by merchants and thieves who had survived the council’s reach for years. Every step counted, every decision could cost them their lives.“We go under,” Kael said finally. “Through the passage behind the apothecary. I mapped it last week. Nobody goes there twice.”Daren’s eyes widened. “Under? The sewers?”Kael gave him a sharp look. “If we’re spotted above, we die. Below, we vanish.”Seris moved to the entrance

“They’re already moving,” Kael said, voice low but sharp.Daren’s eyes widened. “I can feel it… something’s off. Every street seems empty, but I know it’s a trap.”Kael didn’t answer at first. He walked ahead, heels silent on the cobblestones, his mind calculating, predicting. The alley stretched before them, narrow and dark, the kind that swallowed sound and hid footsteps. He felt the tension coil in his gut. Every shadow could be an enemy. Every echo a signal.“You’re too tense,” Seris whispered from behind, keeping pace. “Even you can’t think straight if you move like this.”Kael didn’t relax. He could feel her eyes on him, a silent check, a reminder that she trusted him. Trust was heavy. He had lost it once, and he wasn’t letting it happen again.“Not tense enough, maybe,” he muttered, barely audible.Daren stumbled over a loose stone. Kael’s hand shot out, gripping his shoulder. “Steady. Focus on your steps, not your fear.”The boy’s jaw tightened. Kael could see it in the way he

Kael moved through the chaos with deliberate calm, each step measured. Behind him, Daren limped, blood seeping through the makeshift bandage on his arm. Seris kept close, eyes sharp, scanning every corner.They had broken the council’s code, but breaking it was only the beginning. Now they had to move before the council realized what had happened. Every patrol could cut them off. Every messenger could alert the capital. The streets were no longer safe.Daren’s breathing was uneven. “I don’t know if I can keep up,” he muttered, voice low, strained. “I thought… I thought last night was bad. This…” His hand shook, gripping Kael’s arm.Kael did not slow. “Stop thinking about what’s behind you. Focus on the path in front. Every second counts. Hesitation will get you killed faster than the soldiers ever could.”Daren nodded, teeth gritted. He forced himself to step faster, forcing blood to circulate through stiff muscles. Seris glanced at him, concern clear, but she said nothing. Kael’s ord

Daren’s arm throbbed from the wound he’d received the night before. He walked carefully, head down, eyes darting to every shadow. Kael could see the tension in his shoulders, the way his fingers curled around the dagger as if holding it tighter might somehow make the world safer.“You need to stop gripping that like it’s going to save you,” Kael said quietly, voice steady but sharp. “Your weapon will not protect you from poor planning. Only your mind will.”Daren flinched but nodded. “I… I will.” His voice wavered, betraying the fatigue and fear he had barely slept through.Seris glanced at him from the side. “He’s shaken,” she said, her tone clipped. “You’re pushing him too hard. He’s not ready for another fight yet.”Kael did not respond immediately. He observed Daren closely. He knew Seris was right, but the council had already tested Daren’s limits, and he had survived. Kael had no doubt that Daren could endure, but endurance alone was not enough. He had to be precise, aware, and

Naomi stood frozen as the warehouse door slammed shut.Lucas was inside. Alone. Unarmed. Walking into a trap with nothing but his wits and the desperate hope that Maya was really in there.Her hands were shaking. She gripped the panic button so hard it hurt.Thirty minutes. He'd said thirty minutes.Agent Chen appeared beside her. "What just happened?""They knew about the FBI. Told him to come alone. Threatened to hurt Maya if he didn't.""And he just... went in?""What choice did he have?" Naomi's voice cracked.Chen pulled out her radio. "All teams hold position. Subject has entered the warehouse. Repeat, hold position.""We should go in after him.""Not yet. We give him time to locate the target. The moment we have confirmation on Maya's location, we move."Naomi wanted to scream. Wanted to run into that warehouse herself. But Lucas had been right. Someone needed to be out here. Someone needed to make sure Maya got out even if Lucas didn't.She pressed the panic button. Making sur

Lucas called Agent Chen from the car.She answered on the first ring. "Lucas. Where are you?""Driving to a warehouse. Syndicate location. They moved up the deadline. I have three hours to show up alone or they kill Maya."Silence. Then: "Give me the address."Lucas rattled it off. Heard Chen typing in the background. "That's industrial district. We've had that area flagged for months. High criminal activity. Suspected Syndicate operations.""Can you get a team there?""I can have SWAT in position in forty minutes." Chen's voice was all business now. "But Lucas, if you go in there...""I know. I'm bait. But it's the only way to get Maya out.""Then you go in wired. Full surveillance. Tactical support. The moment we have a visual on your sister, we extract both of you.""Agreed.""Where are you now?""Ten minutes out. Naomi's with me.""Naomi shouldn't...""Naomi's coming," Lucas interrupted. "Non-negotiable."Chen was quiet for a moment. Then: "Fine. But she stays in the van with our

Lucas spread the FBI file across his desk.Phantom's photo stared back at him. Professional headshot. Before she disappeared. Before she became whatever she was now.Real name: Sarah Chen. No relation to Agent Chen. Age thirty-two. Born in Seattle. Computer science degree from MIT. Worked for three different tech companies before dropping off the grid eight months ago.Last seen in Prague."You knew her," Naomi said from behind him."Yeah." Lucas traced the edge of the photo. "We worked together twice. She was brilliant. Better than me at code. Not as good at improvising but her technical skills were flawless.""What happened?""I don't know. We had a falling out after the trafficking job went wrong. She blamed me. Said I was too idealistic. Too worried about collateral damage. Then she disappeared."Byte's laptop pinged from across the room. He'd arrived an hour ago with equipment. Surveillance gear. Encrypted communication. Everything they'd need."Found something," Byte called out.

Lucas sat in the passenger seat of Naomi's car, staring out the window as she drove downtown. Neither of them had slept. They'd spent all night researching the Syndicate, finding nothing, watching Lucas's decoy system pretend to be scared while his real work happened underneath.Forty hours left."You don't have to tell her anything," Naomi said, breaking the silence. "Chen doesn't need to know about Maya.""She already knows." Lucas pulled out his phone. Showed Naomi the text that had come through an hour ago from Agent Chen. We need to talk about the Syndicate. And your sister. 10 AM. Don't be late.Naomi's hands tightened on the wheel. "How does she know?""FBI's been monitoring Syndicate communications. They probably intercepted the same messages I got." Lucas put his phone away. "Or they've been watching me closer than I thought.""What are you going to tell her?""I don't know yet."The federal building loomed ahead. Glass and steel and the particular kind of architecture that w

Lucas's finger hovered over the mouse. The email sat there waiting. Subject line in bold: "WE NEED TO TALK - THE SYNDICATE." Naomi's hand landed on his wrist. "Don't. Not yet. We need to think about this first." "What's there to think about?" Lucas's voice came out rough. "They have Maya. They want something. I need to know what." "And the moment you open that email, they'll know you're engaged. They'll know they have leverage." Naomi's fingers tightened. "Right now you still have some control. The second you open it, you give that up." Lucas looked at her. At the worry in her eyes. At the way she was trying to protect him even though she had to be terrified herself. "I have to know," he said quietly. Naomi held his gaze for a long moment. Then she let go of his wrist and moved her chair closer so their shoulders touched. "Then we read it together." Lucas clicked. The email loaded. Plain text. No formatting. Professional. He read it aloud so Naomi could hear. "Zer

Lucas stared at the photo on his laptop screen until his eyes burned.His sister. Maya. Alive.The photo was recent. High resolution. Taken maybe a week ago based on the timestamp hidden in the metadata. She stood in front of what looked like a concrete wall, holding a newspaper with a date he could just barely make out if he zoomed in.Proof of life.His hands were shaking. He pressed them flat against the desk to stop it but that just made his whole arms shake instead.Naomi's hand landed on his shoulder. "Lucas. Talk to me."He couldn't. His throat had closed up completely. Fifteen years. Fifteen years since Maya disappeared. Fifteen years of searching. Fifteen years of dead ends and false leads and the slow acceptance that she was probably dead.And now this."Who sent it?" Naomi leaned closer to look at the screen.Lucas forced himself to breathe. In through the nose. Out through the mouth. The way he used to do before a difficult hack when staying calm meant the difference betwe