CHAPTER 72; The Car Door That Felt Like a TrapYvonne's Pov;The black SUV idled at the mouth of the alley, engine low and steady like it had all the time in the world. The headlights washed over me, turning the cold pavement silver and making my shadow stretch long and thin behind me.I couldn’t breathe.My palms were slick, fingers trembling so badly I kept curling them into fists just to feel something solid. My heart thudded in my chest in a rhythm that didn’t feel human anymore, too fast, too uneven.The SUV door opened with a soft click.A man leaned forward from the back seat, face hidden in the shadows.“Get in, Yvonne,” he repeated, voice low, calm, too steady for someone who just threatened Ethan’s life.My throat felt like it was closing.“No,” I whispered. But even I didn’t sound convinced. My voice broke halfway through the word.He stepped one foot out of the car, dressed in black dark pants, dark gloves, a jacket zipped up to his neck. A man who blended into night too e

CHAPTER 74; The City Became a Maze With One TargetEthan's Pov;The streetlights blurred as I moved, the city spinning around me in streaks of yellow and blue. My breath came in jagged pulls, every inhale scraping my ribs. The bleeding hadn’t stopped. My shirt stuck to my body like a second skin.But none of it mattered.Pain didn’t matter.Breath didn’t matter.Blood didn’t matter.They had her.And I wasn’t losing her.My hand tightened around the attacker’s cracked phone. I replayed the picture again, even though it made my chest ache.Yvonne.In the back seat of the SUV.Eyes wide.Tears streaking down her face.Trying not to break.Not screaming.Not begging.Just enduring.Trying to survive long enough for me to reach her.I slipped the phone into my pocket as I stepped into the street. Cars honked and swerved, but I didn’t stop. My legs moved faster than my mind, adrenaline doing what willpower couldn’t.I stumbled once when the pain surged, but caught myself on a parked car. M

CHAPTER 76; The Moment the Camera Went LiveYvonne's Pov;The red recording light glowed like a small, merciless eye in the center of the clearing. It stared straight at me, unblinking, watching every shake, every breath, every tear that slipped down my cheek.I didn’t want to cry, but fear worked its way through my chest like a slow, sharp blade. My knees sank deeper into the cold dirt. The air felt heavier here, like the forest itself knew something terrible was about to happen.Kai stood behind me, just slightly out of frame. His shadow stretched long across the ground, thin and sharp like a knife pressed against the earth.“Good,” he murmured, “don’t look away from the camera.”My jaw clenched hard enough to hurt. Staring at the lens felt like staring into the mouth of something ready to swallow me whole.He tilted my chin up with two fingers. “Higher. He needs to see your face.”I flinched at his touch.He smirked. “Perfect.”He stepped back and nodded at the driver, who adjusted

CHAPTER 78; The Night Split in TwoEthan’s PovThe forest swallowed the road in front of me, trees clawing at the headlights like they were trying to drag me back. My chest felt tight every breath scraping against my ribs like broken glass but I didn’t ease off the gas.The feed had cut.The sound.The picture.The connection.Gone.But not before I saw her.Her knees in the dirt.Her hands shaking around the gun.Her eyes locked on mine, begging me to get there.Begging me not to break.I gripped the steering wheel so hard my knuckles turned white. Blood dripped from my wrist down to the leather, warm, steady. Every pulse a reminder:She needed me.They had her.And I was late.The car shot forward.I’d sent Aiden ahead, but I didn’t know how close he was. The man moved like a shadow, fast, quiet, lethal. He’d told me once:“If you ever need the kind of help that ruins a man, call me.”Tonight, I did.The trees parted, and the dirt road widened just enough for me to swerve around a f

CHAPTER 80; Running Through the DarkYvonne’s PovThe forest swallowed us as soon as we moved.Branches whipped past my face, dirt kicked up under our feet, and the cold air burned my throat every time I tried to breathe.Ethan kept my hand locked in his, his grip firm even as his blood dripped onto the leaves. Every time he stumbled, my heart stopped. Every time he hissed under his breath, I felt something inside me twist.He was hurt.Not just bruised bleeding.But he didn’t slow down.Aiden moved ahead of us like he’d been born in the shadows, glancing back every few seconds to make sure we were following.“We’re not clear,” he muttered. “Another team is already converging.”Ethan grunted, “How many?”“Four, maybe five. Faster than the last group.”I swallowed hard. “They’re coming after us?”“For you,” Aiden said. “And for him.”A chill ran through me.Ethan squeezed my hand. “Don’t look back.”He didn’t say it’s okay.He didn’t say we’re safe.He didn’t lie.He just pulled me clo