CHAPTER 112:The Message He Shouldn’t HearEthan's Pov;The lasers locked onto me.One.Two.Ten of them, slicing through the fog like spears of red light.Behind me, I heard Yvonne inhale sharply, small, broken, terrified.“Ethan,” she whispered. “Don’t ”But I was already walking forward.Danica cursed under her breath. Evan hissed my name. Reina muttered something between a prayer and an insult.I didn’t stop.If the shock units wanted a target, I’d give them one.A distorted voice echoed across the dock, deep and cold through an amplifier:“ETHAN HANK. SURRENDER.”I lifted my chin. “Come get me.”Boots thundered.Metal scraped.Crane arms groaned overhead.But then A new sound cut through the chaos.A voice.Soft.Familiar.Twisted by speakers, but unmistakable.“Ethan…”The air froze around me.Yvonne stiffened behind me like she’d been stabbed.Danica lifted her rifle slowly. “Is that ”Evan swore under his breath. “No. No, that’s not possible.”Aiden whispered, “Who the hell ?”

CHAPTER 114:Into the Dark WaterEthan's Pov;Yvonne’s scream sliced straight through the fog.High.Sharp.Panicked.It was the sound that ripped something out of me clean, violent, instinctive.I didn’t think so.I didn’t breathe.I didn’t even feel my feet hit the ground.I just moved.“YVONNE!” I roared, the fog swallowing my voice.Her silhouette dragged backward, kicking, fighting, trying to claw the hand covering her mouth. The traitor, whoever the hell he was, kept her pinned to his chest, using her as a shield.My lungs seized with fury.“Let her go!” I bellowed.A cold voice answered from the mist.“Take one more step, Ethan, and I snap her neck.”I stopped.Not because I wanted to.Because Yvonne’s eyes found mine wide, terrified, begging.I could tear down the world, but I couldn’t risk her.Behind me, Danica yelled, “Ethan! Who the hell is that?!”Reina snarled, “I can’t see him fog’s too thick ”Evan aimed his gun. “Give me a clean angle.”“There isn’t one!” Aiden squeake

CHAPTER 116: The Oil Platform TrapEthan's Pov;The ocean swallowed us.Waves slapped the hull. Fog wrapped around the boat like cold fingers. The engine rattled beneath Evan’s grip, coughing like it might die at any moment.We were barely ahead of Cole’s pursuit.Barely.Yvonne sat pressed against my side, fingers digging into my shirt. She was still shaking, her breaths small and uneven. Saltwater dripped from her hair, her lips pale from the cold. Every time the boat hit a wave, she winced, her ankle throbbing, ribs bruised, skin raw.“Are you warm enough?” I murmured.Her voice was thin. “Not really.”I pulled her closer. She let her head drop against my shoulder, clutching me tighter.Reina shouted over the engine, “I see lights up ahead!”Danica narrowed her eyes. “Platform. Abandoned.”Aiden groaned. “Oh great. Another abandoned death trap.”Derrick whimpered, “Why can’t we just… surrender? They want Ethan, not us!”Evan spun and smacked the back of Derrick’s head. “Say somethi

CHAPTER 118: The Line That BreaksEthan's Pov;The platform vibrated under our feet. Wind slammed into the rusting beams, and the ocean roared beneath us like it wanted to swallow the whole structure. Everything felt unstable: the metal, the air, even the people around me.But nothing was more unstable than Evan standing in front of me.His chest rose and fell too fast. His jaw trembled, just barely. His eyes wouldn’t settle. They flicked from me, to Lysander, to the others, then back to me like he was searching for an escape from his own skin.“Ethan…” he whispered. “Don’t listen to him.”I didn’t move.I didn’t trust myself to move.Lysander stepped forward, that same quiet smile cutting across his face.“I see the way you hesitate,” he said. “You already know the truth.”Evan flinched like the words burned.And maybe they did.Yvonne’s hand tightened around my arm small, shaking, but grounding. Her grip told me she felt everything I felt: anger, confusion, fear, betrayal twisting i

CHAPTER 120:The End of the RopeEthan's Pov;The last ladder was cold under my hands.Wet.Rust-covered.Shaking from the impact of Lysander’s men battering the platform below.Each step up felt like I was climbing out of the life that had tried to destroy me for years.Yvonne climbed with me one hand gripping the rung, the other clinging to my arm. Her breaths were sharp, uneven. Her ankle trembled every time she lifted it, but she didn’t stop.Not once.At the top of the ladder, the wind hit us hard and violently, like the sky itself didn’t want us here. The roof was flat, wide, marked with an old landing pad symbol faded by storms.The helicopter waited on the far side.Blades spinning lazily.Engine humming.A quiet, hungry sound.Lysander stood beside it.He didn’t look rushed.Or panicked.Or threatened.He looked patient, like a man waiting for a delayed meeting.Danica and Reina reached the roof behind us, guns raised. Evan helped Derrick up. Aiden collapsed on his knees, pant