A steady, rhythmic beeping filled the silence, a sound both foreign and strangely familiar. It cut through the thick fog in his mind, dragging him toward consciousness, pulling him from the abyss of nothingness.Damian Steele’s eyelids fluttered, heavy as lead, resisting his attempts to open them. His body felt foreign, weighted down as though he had been buried under a mountain. The scent of antiseptic filled his nostrils, sharp and clinical.Where… am I?His fingers twitched, a slow, sluggish movement that felt like a victory. He tried again, curling them into a fist, but pain flared up his arm, sharp and unrelenting. A low groan escaped his lips. The sound startled him. It had been so long since he had heard his own voice.He pried his eyes open, the world around him swimming in and out of focus. Blinding fluorescent lights burned his retinas, making him squint. The ceiling was white, smooth, unfamiliar. Machines surrounded him, their monitors blinking in silent vigilance. The room

Elena Knight stayed hidden in the shadows across from the hospital, her hoodie pulled low over her face as she watched the entrance. A cold breeze swept through the streets, rustling the leaves of a nearby tree, but she barely noticed.Damian Steele was awake.And if she knew him at all, he wouldn’t stop until he found the truth.Her fingers curled into fists at her sides. Two years ago, she had done everything in her power to erase herself from his life. She had destroyed records, wiped her presence from every place he had ever known her to be, and made sure there were no breadcrumbs leading back to her.Yet, here she was, standing outside the hospital where he lay.What the hell am I doing?A part of her wanted to turn around and disappear again. Leave him to his life, let him figure things out on his own. But the other part—the part she had fought to suppress—needed to see him. Needed to make sure he was truly okay.Her phone buzzed in her pocket. She ignored it.She already knew w

Damian clenched his jaw as he stared at the address Caleb had given him. His fingers tightened around the edge of the hospital bed, his patience wearing thin. He had spent weeks confined to this room, recovering from an accident he barely remembered, while somewhere out there, a woman who knew more than anyone else was trying to disappear.Not anymore.He swung his legs off the bed, testing his strength as he pushed himself up. A dull ache ran through his ribs, but he ignored it. He had been through worse. Right now, pain was just another obstacle—one he wasn’t willing to let slow him down.Charles, who had been sitting across from him, sighed. "You just got out of a coma, Damian. Maybe take a breath before jumping headfirst into this."Damian shot him a sharp look. "You know me better than that."Charles shook his head. "Yeah. That’s what worries me."Damian grabbed the paper with the address and slipped it into his pocket. "I’m done waiting. Either you’re with me, or you stay out of

The silence in the dimly lit safehouse was suffocating. Dust swirled lazily through the air, disturbed by their hurried entrance, and the faint hum of a distant highway was the only sound beyond the cracked windows. The stale scent of rusted metal and old oil filled the room, making it clear that no one had used this place in years.Damian's pulse still thundered in his ears, his breath coming in short, controlled exhales as he fought to process the bombshell Elena had just dropped on him. His hands curled into fists, tension tightening his muscles.Someone had tried to kill him.And Elena had known all along."You should have told me sooner," Damian finally said, his voice tight with barely restrained frustration.Elena leaned against the old workbench, arms crossed over her chest. Her expression remained unreadable, but there was something behind her eyes—something weary, something haunted."Would you have believed me?" she asked quietly.Damian opened his mouth to argue, but the wo

The hum of the engine filled the car as it sped down the darkened highway, headlights slicing through the inky blackness. The tension inside was thick—suffocating. No one spoke for the first few minutes, the silence heavy with exhaustion, adrenaline, and unanswered questions.Damian sat in the front passenger seat, his jaw clenched, mind racing. Elena’s hands gripped the steering wheel tightly, her knuckles white. In the back, Caleb and Charles were breathing hard, coming down from the rush of their escape.Finally, Damian broke the silence."Start talking, Elena."She didn’t look at him. Her eyes remained locked on the road, but her voice, when she spoke, was steady."Vance isn’t just a man," she said. "He’s a ghost."Damian frowned. "Meaning?"Elena exhaled, tapping her fingers against the wheel. "He doesn’t exist—not officially. No records. No paper trails. No fingerprints. But he’s everywhere. Money laundering, assassinations, weapons trafficking, intelligence leaks… If it’s illeg