2026-02-23 10:13:07
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
Invasion
Naomi stood frozen as the warehouse door slammed shut.Lucas was inside. Alone. Unarmed. Walking into a trap with nothing but his wits and the desperate hope that Maya was really in there.Her hands were shaking. She gripped the panic button so hard it hurt.Thirty minutes. He'd said thirty minutes.Agent Chen appeared beside her. "What just happened?""They knew about the FBI. Told him to come alone. Threatened to hurt Maya if he didn't.""And he just... went in?""What choice did he have?" Naomi's voice cracked.Chen pulled out her radio. "All teams hold position. Subject has entered the warehouse. Repeat, hold position.""We should go in after him.""Not yet. We give him time to locate the target. The moment we have confirmation on Maya's location, we move."Naomi wanted to scream. Wanted to run into that warehouse herself. But Lucas had been right. Someone needed to be out here. Someone needed to make sure Maya got out even if Lucas didn't.She pressed the panic button. Making sur
The Bug
Lucas called Agent Chen from the car.She answered on the first ring. "Lucas. Where are you?""Driving to a warehouse. Syndicate location. They moved up the deadline. I have three hours to show up alone or they kill Maya."Silence. Then: "Give me the address."Lucas rattled it off. Heard Chen typing in the background. "That's industrial district. We've had that area flagged for months. High criminal activity. Suspected Syndicate operations.""Can you get a team there?""I can have SWAT in position in forty minutes." Chen's voice was all business now. "But Lucas, if you go in there...""I know. I'm bait. But it's the only way to get Maya out.""Then you go in wired. Full surveillance. Tactical support. The moment we have a visual on your sister, we extract both of you.""Agreed.""Where are you now?""Ten minutes out. Naomi's with me.""Naomi shouldn't...""Naomi's coming," Lucas interrupted. "Non-negotiable."Chen was quiet for a moment. Then: "Fine. But she stays in the van with our
Phantom's Trail
Lucas spread the FBI file across his desk.Phantom's photo stared back at him. Professional headshot. Before she disappeared. Before she became whatever she was now.Real name: Sarah Chen. No relation to Agent Chen. Age thirty-two. Born in Seattle. Computer science degree from MIT. Worked for three different tech companies before dropping off the grid eight months ago.Last seen in Prague."You knew her," Naomi said from behind him."Yeah." Lucas traced the edge of the photo. "We worked together twice. She was brilliant. Better than me at code. Not as good at improvising but her technical skills were flawless.""What happened?""I don't know. We had a falling out after the trafficking job went wrong. She blamed me. Said I was too idealistic. Too worried about collateral damage. Then she disappeared."Byte's laptop pinged from across the room. He'd arrived an hour ago with equipment. Surveillance gear. Encrypted communication. Everything they'd need."Found something," Byte called out.
The FBI Meeting
Lucas sat in the passenger seat of Naomi's car, staring out the window as she drove downtown. Neither of them had slept. They'd spent all night researching the Syndicate, finding nothing, watching Lucas's decoy system pretend to be scared while his real work happened underneath.Forty hours left."You don't have to tell her anything," Naomi said, breaking the silence. "Chen doesn't need to know about Maya.""She already knows." Lucas pulled out his phone. Showed Naomi the text that had come through an hour ago from Agent Chen. We need to talk about the Syndicate. And your sister. 10 AM. Don't be late.Naomi's hands tightened on the wheel. "How does she know?""FBI's been monitoring Syndicate communications. They probably intercepted the same messages I got." Lucas put his phone away. "Or they've been watching me closer than I thought.""What are you going to tell her?""I don't know yet."The federal building loomed ahead. Glass and steel and the particular kind of architecture that w
The Syndicate's Offer
Lucas's finger hovered over the mouse. The email sat there waiting. Subject line in bold: "WE NEED TO TALK - THE SYNDICATE." Naomi's hand landed on his wrist. "Don't. Not yet. We need to think about this first." "What's there to think about?" Lucas's voice came out rough. "They have Maya. They want something. I need to know what." "And the moment you open that email, they'll know you're engaged. They'll know they have leverage." Naomi's fingers tightened. "Right now you still have some control. The second you open it, you give that up." Lucas looked at her. At the worry in her eyes. At the way she was trying to protect him even though she had to be terrified herself. "I have to know," he said quietly. Naomi held his gaze for a long moment. Then she let go of his wrist and moved her chair closer so their shoulders touched. "Then we read it together." Lucas clicked. The email loaded. Plain text. No formatting. Professional. He read it aloud so Naomi could hear. "Zer
The Message
Lucas stared at the photo on his laptop screen until his eyes burned.His sister. Maya. Alive.The photo was recent. High resolution. Taken maybe a week ago based on the timestamp hidden in the metadata. She stood in front of what looked like a concrete wall, holding a newspaper with a date he could just barely make out if he zoomed in.Proof of life.His hands were shaking. He pressed them flat against the desk to stop it but that just made his whole arms shake instead.Naomi's hand landed on his shoulder. "Lucas. Talk to me."He couldn't. His throat had closed up completely. Fifteen years. Fifteen years since Maya disappeared. Fifteen years of searching. Fifteen years of dead ends and false leads and the slow acceptance that she was probably dead.And now this."Who sent it?" Naomi leaned closer to look at the screen.Lucas forced himself to breathe. In through the nose. Out through the mouth. The way he used to do before a difficult hack when staying calm meant the difference betwe
You may also like
The Return Of The God of War
Esther Writes376.0K viewsWAR GOD'S REVENGE
Ardy-sensei93.6K viewsEthan Storm’s Dark Awakening
Magical Inspirations143.0K viewsThe Billionaire Husband in Disguise
Banin SN189.7K viewsThe Hidden Heir's Revenge
Ben Louis 715 viewsMy Great Fortune System
Pen Ninja 5.1K viewsThe Charismatic Student Heir
CrasedWrit 3.5K viewsRISE OF THE LOST HEIR: ASHES TO EMPIRE
Zhi-Mei 815 views