All Chapters of The Sterling Accord : Chapter 111
- Chapter 120
200 chapters
Chapter 111
The Breach“Move!” Ethan’s voice cut through the roar of gunfire.Clara ducked, the smell of smoke and hot metal choking her lungs. They tore through the shattered hallway, walls crumbling behind them as Kane’s men pressed forward.“Left—now!” Ethan barked, slamming his palm against the door panel. The blast hit before it opened fully. The shockwave hurled them both inside.Clara hit the floor, gasping. “Ethan—”“I’m fine—” He winced, one hand gripping his shoulder.Her eyes widened. “You’re bleeding!”“It’s nothing,” he bit out, teeth clenched. “Keep moving.”“Like hell I will,” she snapped, crawling to him. “You can barely stand.”“Clara—”“Sit down.”The command in her voice froze him. For once, Ethan obeyed.She tore off a strip from her shirt and pressed it hard against his wound. Blood seeped fast. He hissed, muscles tightening.“Stay still,” she murmured.He tried to joke, but his breath hitched. “You know, this isn’t how I pictured our next date.”Clara glared. “You call this
Chapter 112
The ConfrontationEthan’s boots crunched over the wet leaves as he approached the clearing. Clara stayed close, hand brushing against his arm every so often, a silent reminder that she wasn’t leaving.“Victor,” Ethan’s voice cut through the night, sharp and demanding. “Stop hiding.”From the shadows, Victor stepped forward, hands raised, rain slicking his hair to his forehead. His face was pale, but calm — unnervingly so.“You could have stayed hidden,” Ethan said, lowering his gun just slightly. “I don’t usually give second chances.”“I’m not here for that,” Victor said quietly. “I’m here to give you one.”Clara’s brow furrowed. “One chance for what?”Ethan didn’t answer. He kept his gaze locked on Victor, eyes narrowed, muscles taut.“You can start by telling me why the hell you led Kane to the compound,” Ethan finally barked.Victor took a deep breath. “I didn’t.”Ethan’s laugh was bitter. “Don’t. Don’t even try to play innocent.”“I’m not,” Victor said, taking a careful step close
Chapter 113
The MessageRain pattered against the roof of the safe house, soft but insistent. Clara sat cross-legged on the floor, knees pressed against her chest, staring at the small chip Ethan had recovered from Victor.Ethan leaned against the wall opposite her, one hand pressed against his shoulder where the bullet wound still throbbed, eyes scanning the room as though danger could emerge from the shadows.“You really think this will tell us anything?” Clara asked, voice quiet.Ethan didn’t answer immediately. His jaw was tight. “It has to.”She looked at him, studying the tension in his face, the way his fingers drummed against the table. “It’s Kane, Ethan. You think he leaves anything for us to just… find?”Ethan’s eyes flicked to her. “You think I don’t know that? You think I’m not expecting a trap?”Clara’s lips pressed together. “Then why touch it?”Ethan exhaled sharply. “Because I have to know what he’s planning next. Because he’s trying to get into my head.”Clara leaned forward. “An
Chapter 114
The WarningThe morning light filtered weakly through the blinds, slanting dust motes across the floor of the safe house. Clara sat at the edge of the bed, phone in hand, rereading the message from last night. Her fingers trembled slightly.“Coordinates tied to… my father’s old facility,” she whispered, tracing the numbers with a fingertip.Ethan stirred from the couch, bandaged shoulder aching but eyes sharp. “You’re still thinking about that message?”Clara didn’t look up. “I have to. It’s connected to Kane. I can feel it.”Ethan ran a hand over his face, then leaned back. “And you’re going alone, right? Just like last time?”“No,” she snapped, irritation and fear mixing. “We go together.”Ethan’s gaze softened, but there was steel in it. “Good. Because I won’t let you run into his trap alone again.”She looked at him, her expression open, her eyes searching. “Then tell me. What do you know about this place? The facility?”He leaned forward, elbows on his knees. “Not much. Only what
Chapter 115
Smoke and MirrorsThe forest burned in the distance — a jagged orange wound bleeding against the horizon. Clara and Ethan stumbled through the smoke, lungs rasping, adrenaline the only thing keeping their legs moving. The smell of metal and ozone hung in the air. The world had become one long stretch of survival.“Down,” Ethan hissed, pulling her into the shadow of a crumbled outpost wall. A faint hum echoed — mechanical, high-pitched. Clara’s eyes darted upward just in time to catch the gleam of a drone sweeping through the trees.Ethan lifted his weapon and fired once. A clean shot. The drone exploded midair, scattering embers like dying stars. Silence followed — almost holy.Her pulse thudded in her ears. “That was close.”He nodded, still breathing hard, scanning the tree line. “Too close. They’re not guessing anymore — someone fed them our coordinates.”Clara frowned. “You think Kane found us again?”“No,” Ethan said flatly. “He’s not guessing. Someone told him.”His gaze hardene
Chapter 116
The FileThe forest had gone quiet. Too quiet. Even the insects seemed to know what the chip had shown them — something that rewrote the rules of everything Clara and Ethan thought they knew.Ethan stood by the edge of the dying campfire, staring into the ashes. The faint blue glow from the deactivated chip rested in his palm like something poisonous, a secret you could never unsee. His shoulder still bled from the wound he’d sustained days ago, but he didn’t care. Pain grounded him. It reminded him he was still here, still breathing, still trying to stay human in a world that was trying to turn him into something else.Clara sat a few feet away, her knees drawn to her chest, the wind threading through her hair. She hadn’t spoken since the hologram ended. There was nothing left to say — only questions with no answers. The words “SUBJECT: CLARA BERNETT” still pulsed in her mind like a wound that wouldn’t clot.She turned to him finally.“What aren’t you telling me?”Ethan didn’t look u
Chapter 117
Bound by BloodThe rain didn’t stop. It never did when everything was falling apart.By the time Clara and Ethan reached the old service tunnel, they were soaked, shivering, and silent. Water dripped from their clothes, echoing through the narrow corridor like a slow heartbeat. The walls were carved with age — a relic of the old city, half-forgotten and swallowed by roots and time.Clara held the flashlight steady while Ethan checked the generator panel. The dim yellow glow flickered to life, painting his face in ghostly light. His eyes were distant, focused but elsewhere — still trapped in the hologram they’d seen.Her voice broke the silence first. “You knew.”Ethan froze mid-motion. “Clara—”“You knew my name was in that file,” she continued, her tone sharp but trembling underneath. “That’s why you didn’t want to go near it. You knew it was connected to you.”He sighed, leaning against the wall. “I didn’t know how. I swear it.”“But you knew something.”“I suspected,” he admitted.
Chapter 118
The breakout The air was heavy with static and smoke — the kind that clung to the back of your throat, making every breath feel like swallowing metal. The underground facility trembled with each explosion, a wounded beast collapsing on itself. Clara’s fingers tightened around Ethan’s arm as the alarm blared overhead, shrill and merciless.“Move!” she yelled, yanking him down the corridor just as a section of the ceiling caved in behind them.Ethan grunted, his hand pressed to his side where blood seeped through his shirt. “I can still walk—”“You’re barely standing,” she shot back, dragging him toward the exit sign flickering weakly through the haze.Every step echoed against the concrete like a ticking bomb. The sound of boots thudded behind them — Kane’s men were closing in. Clara’s pulse thundered in her ears, the fear sharp and bright, but beneath it was something else — a desperate resolve.They turned a corner and stumbled into a dimly lit chamber — rows of broken test tubes gl
Chapter 119
The Double cross The echo of the gunshot still reverberated in the storm when Clara hit the ground, rain splashing across her face. She turned just in time to see the body of one of Kane’s men collapse behind her — lifeless, blood washing away in the downpour.Victor’s silhouette loomed through the rain, his gun still raised, smoke curling from the muzzle. For a heartbeat, Clara couldn’t move.Ethan pulled himself to his feet, the cold cutting through his soaked clothes, his arm wrapped tightly around his side. “Victor,” he growled, the name slicing through the air like thunder.Victor lowered the gun slowly. His voice came out raw, broken. “You’re welcome.”Clara’s chest heaved as she stared between them — two ghosts from the same war, standing on opposite sides of a line that no longer existed.“What the hell are you doing here?” Ethan demanded, stepping closer.Victor flinched at the tone but didn’t retreat. “Running. From Kane. From all of it.” He glanced down at his bleeding arm
Chapter 120
The choice Rain slashed through the shattered warehouse windows as the world dissolved into gunfire. Muzzle flashes flickered like lightning. Ethan shoved Clara behind an overturned table, his body shielding hers. The echo of bullets tore through the metal walls, sending sparks flying into the dark.“Stay down!” Ethan yelled over the chaos, reloading with quick, sharp motions.Clara’s heartbeat pounded in her ears. “They found us—how did they find us so fast?”Victor’s voice came through the smoke. “Because they never stopped tracking her!” He ducked behind a column, clutching his bleeding side, firing wildly toward the windows.Ethan’s jaw clenched. “You set us up again!”“I didn’t!” Victor snapped, panting. “Kane’s men have been on me since I stole that chip! You think I’d bring them here on purpose?”Another volley of bullets slammed into the wall beside Clara’s head. Ethan yanked her closer, their faces inches apart. “When I say run, you run. Don’t look back.”Her voice trembled.