Jacob and Anna made their way through the building's maintenance corridors, avoiding public areas where Bishop's people might be watching. Leo guided them via phone to a service exit that opened into an alley three blocks from their extraction point.Carl met them with a nondescript van, its interior equipped with tactical equipment and secure communications. "Get in quickly," he urged. "Bishop's teams are canvassing the area."Once inside, Jacob activated the van's encrypted network and pulled up all the files Leo had sent. Anna sat beside him, studying the information with the same intensity he felt burning in his chest."This goes back further than fifteen years," Anna observed, pointing to financial records. "Bishop Nico has been involved in Seron's criminal networks for at least twenty-five years. He was already powerful when your family was killed."Jacob scrolled through documents detailing Bishop's rise to power. Drug trafficking, weapons smuggling, human trafficking—the man h

Anna did not move from blocking the exit. Jacob stood inches away, mystical energy making the air between them shimmer with heat, his eyes still glowing with barely controlled fury."Jacob, look at me," Anna said firmly. "Really look at me, not through your rage."Jacob's glowing eyes met hers. For several seconds they stood frozen in that position—Anna vulnerable but unwavering, Jacob powerful but uncertain."I see you," Jacob said, his voice rough. "And I see Bishop Nico's face when he talked about my father. I see fifteen years of preparation that was not enough. I see—""You see everything except what is actually in front of you right now," Anna interrupted. She reached up slowly, carefully, and placed both hands on Jacob's face. The mystical energy crackling around him made her skin tingle, but she did not pull away."This man in front of me," Anna continued softly. "The one whose eyes are glowing gold with power he can barely control. The one who just destroyed a training room b

Two days after Bishop's museum announcement, Leo initiated the most dangerous phase of their counter-operation. He needed to infiltrate Bishop's organization from the inside, posing as a low-level information broker seeking employment."This is too risky," Jacob protested during the planning session. "If they discover your true identity, Bishop will kill you.""If I do not do this, we go into the museum blind," Leo countered. "We need to know Bishop's real plan, not the public version he is selling to Seron."Jacob reluctantly agreed. Leo had the best chance of anyone on their team to successfully penetrate Bishop's network. His skills in intelligence gathering were unmatched, and he could adopt cover identities seamlessly.For three days, Leo worked his way through Bishop's outer circle. He posed as a former government analyst seeking lucrative private employment, offering his services in exchange for modest payment. Bishop's lieutenants were always looking for skilled people willing

Anna spent the entire night after Ben's meeting studying every piece of information they had gathered on the Nico compound. While Jacob and Leo focused on security protocols and guard rotations, she concentrated on something different—the building's history. "What are you looking for?" Jacob asked around midnight, noticing her intense focus on old city records. "I am not sure yet," Anna replied, scrolling through digitized construction documents. "But grandfather mentioned something that keeps bothering me. He said Bishop's compound was built on the foundation of an older structure. I want to know what stood there before." Jacob left her to her research, trusting that Anna's instincts had proven valuable before. He returned two hours later to find her staring at the screen with wide eyes. "I found it," Anna breathed. "Jacob, come look at this." The document on her screen was a city planning record from ninety years ago. It showed the original structure that had occupied the land

Dust and debris rained down around them as Jacob and Anna sprinted through the collapsing tunnel. The ancient passage groaned under the force of strategically placed explosives, each detonation sending new cracks racing through the stone ceiling. "Keep moving!" Jacob shouted, shielding Anna's head as a chunk of rock crashed down beside them. They had covered perhaps fifty meters when the explosions suddenly stopped. The silence that followed was somehow more terrifying than the noise had been. Jacob pulled Anna behind a support pillar, both of them breathing hard and covered in dust. Then a sound cut through the darkness—a crackling static followed by a familiar voice that made Jacob's blood freeze. "Hello, Jacob Krigg." Bishop Nico's voice echoed through speakers that had been installed throughout the tunnel system. The sound quality was crystal clear, meaning Bishop had prepared this trap meticulously. "I must admit, I am impressed," Bishop continued, his tone conversational