Ethan’s morning began in the dim light filtering weakly through the curtains of his small apartment. Pale gold traced across the walls, revealing a cramped space, a secondhand couch, and a single photograph of a woman smiling faintly at the camera—Nancy, his wife, the woman he thought he knew. His phone vibrated violently on the table, jolting him from half-sleep.“Nancy?” he answered.“Ethan,” her voice cracked through the speaker, sharp and trembling, “come to St. Gabriel’s Hospital now. It’s my mother—she needs blood. O-negative. You’re the only match.”He didn’t hesitate. Ethan never did when it came to her. He grabbed his jacket, shoved his phone into his pocket, and bolted for the door.The streets were alive with the hum of morning traffic—vendors shouting, tires screeching, horns blaring. Ethan moved quickly, chest tight not from fear but from the strange sense that something was about to change.At the corner of Bourdillon Street, a woman stepped out from the crowd and blocke

When Ethan opened his eyes, it wasn’t the sterile white ceiling of a hospital above him, it was a chandelier. Gold and crystal shimmered softly in the morning light. The sheets beneath him were silk, the air faintly scented with sandalwood and antiseptic, a strange mix of luxury and medicine. He pushed himself up slowly, still weak. The room was spacious, too spacious. Floor-to-ceiling windows overlooked the entire city, its skyline glittering under the dawn. At the foot of the bed, Leanna sat quietly in a leather chair, a tablet in her hand. She looked up the moment he stirred, her eyes warm but guarded. “You’re awake,” she said softly. “How do you feel?” Ethan swallowed. “Like I’ve been drained dry.” She smiled faintly. “That’s not far from the truth.” His gaze moved around the room again—the designer furniture, the framed certificates, the large glass panel on the wall engraved with a name: Dr. Ethan Braxton — Chief Executive Officer, Braxton Pharmaceuticals. His heart stuttered. “

The soft hum of machines filled the underground lab as the last line of static faded from the screens. Ethan stood still, his jaw tight, staring at the darkened monitors. The name Voss echoed in his mind like a ghost.Leanna placed a steady hand on his shoulder. “We should leave this floor. If he hacked the system, he might have our location.”Ethan’s gaze didn’t move. “He already does.”She hesitated. “Then what are you thinking?”He turned toward her, the flicker of the old surgeon in his eyes. “That if he’s watching, we make sure he sees exactly what I want him to see.”Upstairs, the executive boardroom buzzed with cautious curiosity. The return of Ethan Braxton, once a legend in the medical world, had already leaked through whispers. Dozens of directors and department heads sat stiffly around the long glass table as Leanna entered with Ethan behind her. Every conversation died instantly.Leanna’s voice rang clear. “Gentlemen, as of today, Dr. Ethan Braxton resumes his position as

The alarms screamed like sirens of war. Red emergency lights bathed the room in a haunting glow as the ground trembled beneath Ethan’s feet.Leanna pulled him back just as a steel beam crashed beside them, sparks bursting into the air.“Ethan, we have to move!” she shouted.But he couldn’t look away from the woman standing in the broken pod.Subject Beta — the woman from his memory, from the photograph — was alive. And yet… not.Her skin was pale as porcelain, veins faintly glowing beneath the surface. The liquid from the pod pooled at her feet like liquid glass, and when she lifted her gaze, her eyes shimmered with unnatural light — luminous blue, almost otherworldly.“You came back,” she said again, her voice soft but echoing with static, as if layered with another presence.Ethan stepped closer despite the danger. “Do you know who you are?”Her expression trembled, pain flashing across her features. “I… was someone once. You told me not to be afraid.”Ethan’s chest tightened. “I di

The night deepened over Braxton Tower. Lightning danced across the skyline, its pale glow spilling through the lab’s fractured glass ceiling as Ethan stood motionless beside the central console, his gaze fixed on Elara. He could barely process what she’d said. My wife. The word echoed in his head, louder than the thunder above.Leanna’s voice cut through the silence. “Ethan, you need to sit. You’ve lost a lot of blood and you’re still recovering from the procedure.”He raised a hand, stopping her. “No. We need answers.”Elara’s breathing was shallow. She leaned weakly against the pod, the faint glow beneath her skin fading as the serum’s effect began to wane.“Answers won’t save us,” she whispered. “Voss has every reason to erase you again.”Ethan turned to the console and connected the biometric interface. The system came alive, scanning his retina before flooding the glass display with data, encrypted files, patient records, and the label: Project Lazarus – Phase II.Leanna frowned.