Divorced at the Banquet, Ascended by the System

Chapter 9: The Bullet You Never Hear

“Down!”

The word barely left Frank’s mouth before the gunshot echoed through the garage. Claire screamed as concrete exploded inches from where her head had been.

Frank slammed into her, dragging her behind the pillar as another shot rang out, sharp, controlled, professional. “That wasn’t a warning,” Claire cried.

Frank pressed her head down. “No. That was a message.”

The System flared violently across his vision. Lethal intent confirmed, Shooter skill level: High, Escape probability: 31%.

Frank exhaled once. Slow. Focused. “Can you run?” he asked.

Claire shook her head. “My legs”

“Then you crawl,” Frank said. “When I say now, you move.”

Another bullet ricocheted, sparks screaming off steel, A calm voice echoed from somewhere in the shadows. “Frank Forbes,” the man called. “You really should’ve stayed dead.”

Claire’s breath hitched. “He knows you.”

Frank’s jaw tightened. “I know of him.”

The System chimed. Identity match: Victor Kane, Private contractor. Clean record. No witnesses.

Frank muttered, “Evelyn finally hired quality.”

Victor’s footsteps echoed, unhurried. Confident. “You made this personal,” Victor continued. “I don’t like personal jobs.”

Frank raised his voice. “Then walk away.”

Victor chuckled. “Can’t. You broke the board. You broke the narrative. And now”

Another shot cracked, closer this time. “you’re breaking my paycheck.”

Claire sobbed quietly. “We’re going to die.”

Frank leaned closer to her ear. “Not today.”

The System pulsed. Override available: Environmental exploitation.

Frank glanced around, fuel lines, parked cars, low ceiling. He whispered, “When I throw something, crawl left. Don’t stop.”

“What are you”

“Now.”

Frank hurled his phone across the garage. It skidded, clattered, And exploded into sound. Sirens. Screams. Police chatter. Victor cursed. “Cute trick.”

Frank didn’t wait. He shoved Claire forward. “Go!”

They moved, scraping, scrambling, another shot tearing into the pillar they’d just left. Claire cried out. “He’s right there!”

Frank spun, grabbed a loose fire extinguisher from the wall, and hurled it. Victor fired, The extinguisher burst. White foam detonated into the air, blinding everything.

Victor shouted in frustration. Frank seized the moment. He grabbed Claire, half-dragging her toward the stairwell. The System screamed warnings. Trajectory prediction unstable.

They reached the door, A hand slammed it shut from the other side. Victor’s voice was close now. Too close. “End of the line.”

Claire collapsed. “Please”

Frank stepped forward, calm, terrifyingly so.

“You were hired to erase me,” Frank said. “Do you know why you’ll fail?”

Victor tilted his head. “Enlighten me.”

“Because you’re reacting,” Frank replied. “And I’m remembering.”

The System surged. Memory bleed: Death Event recalled.

Frank moved before the next shot. He lunged, not toward Victor, but sideways, slamming his shoulder into a car. The alarm blared. Victor fired, The bullet shattered glass, not bone.

Frank grabbed a tire iron from the trunk. Victor swore, backing up. “You’re not normal.”

Frank smiled grimly. “Neither is dying twice.”

They collided. Steel met bone. Victor grunted as the tire iron cracked against his arm. He retaliated fast, knife flashing. Frank barely twisted aside, the blade slicing fabric, skin. Pain flared.

The System recalculated. Close-combat survival: 18%.

Claire screamed, “Frank!”

Victor smirked. “You’re bleeding.”

Frank glanced at his arm. “You should see the other guy.”

Victor lunged again. Frank ducked, and slammed the tire iron upward. There was a sickening crunch, Victor staggered, coughing.

Sirens wailed louder now, real ones, Victor wiped blood from his mouth, eyes cold. “This isn’t over.”

Frank met his gaze. “For you, it is.”

Victor vanished into the smoke and shadows just as police flooded the garage, Guns raised. “Hands up!”

Frank dropped the tire iron, Officers rushed past him toward Claire. One knelt beside her. “Ma’am, are you hurt?”

She shook her head violently. “No—no, he saved me.”

Frank leaned against the car, breathing hard. The System dimmed. Threat retreated, Survival confirmed.

Hours later, in a sterile hospital room, Claire sat wrapped in a blanket, hands shaking around a paper cup. Frank stood near the window, arm bandaged. “You could’ve left me,” she said quietly.

Frank didn’t turn. “That wouldn’t solve anything.”

She looked up at him. “They sent a killer.”

“Yes.”

“And you still want me to testify?”

Frank finally faced her. “More than ever.”

She swallowed. “They won’t stop.”

“No,” Frank agreed. “They’ll escalate.”

The System pulsed faintly. Enemy state: Cornered.

Claire hesitated. “Ryan didn’t order that hit.”

Frank’s eyes sharpened. “I know.”

She whispered, “Then who?”

Frank’s phone buzzed. A message from an unknown number.

UNKNOWN: You survived. Good.

Now we can talk.

Frank showed the screen to Claire. Her face drained of color. “Who is that?”

Frank stared at the message, mind racing. “Someone above Ryan,” he said slowly. “Above Evelyn.”

The System flickered, uneasy. New antagonist detected, Threat level: Unknown.

Claire whispered, “There’s someone else?”

Frank nodded once. “There always is.”

The hospital door opened. An officer stepped in. “Mr. Forbes. There’s someone here to see you.”

“Who?” Frank asked.

The officer hesitated. “She says she’s your mother-in-law.”

Frank froze. Claire looked between them. “Your… Evelyn’s mother?”

Frank felt something cold settle in his chest. “Yes,” he said quietly. “That would be her.”

The System pulsed, slow, ominous. Hidden root identified.

Frank exhaled. “Send her in,” he said.

Outside the room, footsteps approached, measured, deliberate. Frank squared his shoulders. The war wasn’t widening. It was going up.