The night over Golden Sparrow City was unusually quiet.Too quiet.At exactly 2:17 a.m., three Phoenix facilities were attacked almost simultaneously.The first explosion tore through an underground communications center.The second struck a weapons-storage facility hidden beneath an abandoned industrial building.The third attack targeted one of Phoenix’s oldest intelligence hubs.None of the locations were publicly known.Not even most Phoenix members knew where they were.Yet the attackers arrived with frightening precision.They knew the entrances.They knew the security systems.They knew the patrol schedules.And, most importantly—They knew where to strike.⸻Nick was inside the third facility when the alarms began screaming.“Security breach!”He immediately stood.“What?”An operative rushed toward him.“Multiple intruders!”“How many?”“We don’t know!”Nick grabbed his weapon and moved toward the monitoring room.“Lock every entrance.”“We already tried!”“What do you mean?”

“I know.”“Then why are you considering it?”“Because she’s alive.”Nick fell silent.One of the Twelve Gods spoke.“Boss, if she’s really Elena, then this changes everything.”Conor looked at him.“It does.”Another member stood.“We can deploy everyone.”“No.”“Why?”“Because that’s exactly what they want.”Nick nodded.“They want us to move.”Conor placed the phone on the table.“They attacked Phoenix.”He looked around the room.“They exposed the mole.”“They disappeared Orion.”“And now they’re showing me Elena.”His expression became colder with every word.“This entire sequence was planned.”One of the Gods frowned.“Then Orion…”“May have been taken.”“Or he may be involved.”The room went silent.Conor’s eyes swept across the eleven men.“That’s why nobody leaves this room.”One of them looked surprised.“You suspect one of us?”“I suspect everyone.”The words struck the room like a blade.A few faces hardened.One member stepped forward.“After everything we’ve been through

The words seemed to freeze the entire room.“Ronan Nelson.”Conor stared at Elena.For several seconds, he didn’t blink.Then he gave a quiet, almost disbelieving laugh.“Ronan?”Elena nodded.“Yes.”“My wife’s grandfather?”“Yes.”“The same man who spent the last few weeks blaming Olivia for everything?”“Yes.”Conor’s expression became unreadable.“Elena, explain.”She took a breath.“Orion was the traitor.”Conor’s eyes hardened.“I suspected him.”“But you didn’t know the extent of it.”“No.”Elena walked toward the old table in the center of the room.She placed several documents on it.“Orion didn’t disappear after the attack on Phoenix.”“He disappeared because he wanted you to think he had been captured.”Conor picked up one of the documents.“What did he build?”“A faction.”“Inside Phoenix?”“Not officially.”Elena shook her head.“He recruited former operatives, mercenaries, intelligence officers, and people who had been expelled from Phoenix.”Conor’s eyes moved across the

The old Nelson warehouse stood at the edge of Golden Sparrow City, surrounded by abandoned factories and empty roads.It had been unused for years.No lights.No guards.No employees.Just a massive concrete building sitting beneath the darkness.Conor’s convoy stopped several meters away.Nick stepped out first.He immediately raised his hand.“Everyone stay alert.”Phoenix operatives spread out around the building.Olivia stepped out of the vehicle.Conor immediately looked at her.“Stay close to me.”“I will.”Nick approached.“Boss, there’s no movement.”Conor studied the warehouse.“That’s what worries me.”Olivia looked toward the dark building.“Maybe Ronan isn’t here.”“He was here.”“How do you know?”Conor pointed toward the ground.“His car.”Ronan’s vehicle sat abandoned beside the warehouse.The driver’s door was open.The keys were still inside.Olivia’s expression tightened.“Why would he leave his car?”“He didn’t.”Conor walked closer.“He was taken.”Nick immediately

The Hale estate remained completely dark.Not a single light came back on.The silence was almost unnatural.Daniel stared at his father.“What did you do?”Arthur didn’t answer.“Father.”Still nothing.Daniel stepped closer.“You said Ronan knew what you did.”Arthur slowly closed the old safe.“Enough.”“No.”Daniel’s voice hardened.“You can’t just say that and expect me to stay quiet.”Arthur looked at him.“You don’t understand what you’re dealing with.”“Then explain it to me.”Arthur’s jaw tightened.“Some truths are dangerous.”Daniel glanced at the photographs scattered across the desk.“Is Conor one of those truths?”Arthur looked at the photograph of the young Conor.“Yes.”“Was he really the Ghost?”Arthur nodded.“He was.”“And you knew?”“I suspected.”“You met him before?”Arthur remained silent.Daniel’s eyes widened.“You did.”Arthur finally sighed.“Years ago.”“How many?”“Six.”Daniel stared at him.“That was before he disappeared.”“Yes.”“What happened?”Arthur