Callista's POV
The warmth of laughter still lingered faintly in the air, like the last glow of a fading fire.
But the second my heartbeat steadied, the second my mind cleared—
Reality came crashing back in.
Aurora.
Her name slammed into my chest like a fist, driving out all the laughter, all the softness, all the fleeting relief.
I sat up a little straighter, ignoring the sharp protest of my muscles, the way my body still ached from the weakness of too many days spent trapped between life and death.
My fingers curled into the thin blanket draped over me, nails digging into the fabric.
No more waiting.
No more helplessness.
I forced my eyes up—searching, finding—the people around me.
Not just friends.
Not just family.
LUMENN.
At the heart of them stood two women I trusted more than anyone in this broken world:
My mother—Evelyn.
The so-called "housewife," the smiling lady who baked cookies and sewed buttons on my uniforms.
And beside her, her twin sister—Vivian.
Better known in the field as Agent Pixie.
To the rest of the world, they were nobodies.
But to us?
To me?
They were legends.
I met my mother's gaze—calm, steady, deceptively soft—and then flicked my eyes to Vivian, who stood with her arms crossed, a small, approving tilt at the corner of her mouth.
I swallowed once, my throat dry.
Bracing myself.
"Mother. Agent Twix," I said, my voice steady out of habit, even as my body trembled. "What's the report on Aurora?"
The laughter vanished like smoke.
The lightness drained from the room in an instant.
Tension wrapped itself around us, tightening, suffocating.
My mother exchanged a brief glance with Vivian—a silent conversation too fast for the rest of us to follow.
Vivian—Agent Pixie—moved first.
She reached into the hidden pocket of her jacket and pulled out a folded tablet. The screen flickered to life in her fingers, casting cold light across her face.
"Partial recon completed," she said briskly, slipping into her battlefield voice—sharp, efficient, merciless.
"Satellite picked up encrypted movement along the east quadrant, matching the coordinates Xavier pulled from the hacked terminal."
Hope stirred inside me.
A tiny, fragile thing.
"That's the good news," my mother added softly, her voice threading a quiet warning through the air.
My stomach twisted into knots.
"And the bad?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
Mother's lips pressed into a thin line.
"They're starving," she said quietly, the words slicing through me like knives.
"Aurora and the other kids... they've been imprisoned in total darkness. No food. No light. For at least four days."
A shudder ran through me. I pressed my fist against my thigh, trying to steady myself.
My mother continued, her voice strained but controlled.
"They couldn't tell if it was day or night. Not even a sliver of sunlight. And..."
She hesitated.
My heart stopped.
"And there's a man," she finally said. "Dark hair. Red eyes. He... he knows Aurora's mother."
My breath caught in my throat.
"They wanted Lucien," she added, her voice dropping lower, heavier.
"But they took Aurora by mistake."
A thick, heavy silence settled over us.
Vivian pulled out some papers—actual printed papers, which meant they were important enough not to risk digital tracking—and read aloud:
"Barnabus Holfrads.
Age 34.
Connected to royal bloodlines. His sister served as lady-in-waiting to Luciana of the Blackthorn lineage."
The room pulsed with electric fury.
I sucked in a sharp breath, every muscle in my body going taut.
The blanket under my hands trembled from how hard I was gripping it.
Barnabus Holfrads.
A new name to add to the list.
A new target.
Not far wasn't good enough.
I needed her back.
I needed her now.
"How long until we locate the exact site?" I demanded, pushing every ounce of strength I had into my voice.
Phelia leaned forward, her hands clenched tightly on her knees, her expression grim.
"We've narrowed it down to a seven-mile radius," she said. "Xavier and Simon are still decoding the latest transmission."
Seven miles.
Seven miles of possible hell.
Vivian watched me—sharp, calculating, unflinching.
She could see it.
The way I shook under the blanket.
The pain I tried to hide behind clenched teeth.
"You need rest," she said, her voice cutting clean through the rising panic in my chest.
"No missions. Not yet."
I ignored her.
"I want in," I said.
My voice didn't waver.
My heart didn't flinch.
The words rang out like a gunshot.
Silence dropped over the room like a guillotine.
Phelia blinked at me like I'd lost my mind.
Xavier muttered a low, furious curse.
Simon buried his face in his hands.
Caleb closed his eyes, shaking his head slowly like he could will me into sense.
My mother stepped forward, crouching beside the bed, moving so slowly—so tenderly—that it almost broke me apart.
She brushed a stray lock of hair from my forehead.
Her touch was unbearably gentle, the way you touched something already shattered.
"Callista," she whispered, her voice cracking at the edges, "you just woke up.
You almost died."
"I know," I said.
I did know.
But it didn't change a damn thing.
"You can't throw yourself back into the fire yet," Vivian said, softer now, but no less firm.
I looked at each of them—really looked.
Phelia, who hadn't left my side once.
Xavier, who had worked himself half to death for me.
Simon, who had believed in me even when he pretended not to believe in anything.
Caleb, who would tear the world apart if I asked him to.
And my mother, who would rather burn than lose another child.
But none of them could change the way the ache hollowed me out from the inside.
This wasn't about me anymore.
It was about Aurora.
"I have to bring her back," I said, my voice trembling with the force of it.
"Because if I don't... if I stay here and do nothing...
I'll never forgive myself."
A beat of silence.
The longest second of my life.
And then my mother squeezed her eyes shut, pain flashing across her face.
When she opened them again, her gaze wasn't soft anymore.
It was steel.
It was battle-forged.
Just like mine.
"Alright," she said.
Her voice was low. Solid.
"We'll do it together."
Together.
Like we always had.
Like we always would.
No matter what it cost.
A small sound broke the moment—a sharp, uneven breath.
I turned and found Aurelius sitting against the far wall, his head bowed, his whole body trembling.
It made sense.
This wasn't just any mission for him.
Aurora was his half-sister, after all.
And maybe for the first time, the weight of everything—the bloodlines, the betrayals—was too much even for him to carry alone.
I wasn't good at comforting people.
Hell, I could barely comfort myself most days.
But I pushed myself up, ignoring the weakness gnawing at my limbs, and made my way over to him.
I crouched beside him, awkward but sincere.
"So..." I started, my voice rough with exhaustion, "how's Lucien? Her twin?"
He didn't look up, but the tension in his shoulders shifted slightly.
"The last time I was with him," I continued, offering a tiny, lopsided smile, "he was admiring me like I was some kind of goddess.
Six years old, and already he knows how to admire a virgin lady, huh?"
Aurelius let out a tiny, broken sound—a ghost of a laugh.
I pushed a little further, hoping to lift the heaviness, even for a second.
"He's got potential, you know. Smart kid.
If you ever want him to have a different future...
He could join my organization.
Future hacker material."
I said it lightly, half-joking, but deep down, I wasn't sure if Aurelius would ever agree.
After all, his father—Lucien's father too—had founded the very criminal organization we were fighting against.
He had trained Aurelius from the moment he could walk, sculpted him into the perfect heir for a legacy built on blood and shadows.
How could I offer Lucien anything different, when the chains of their family were still so tight around them?
Aurelius finally looked up at me, and for a second, I saw it—the raw, desperate hope buried under all that pain.
Maybe... just maybe... there was still a chance.
For Aurora.
For Lucien.
For all of us.
The moment I made up my mind, I didn't hesitate.
I ripped the IV out of my arm, ignoring the sharp sting of pain and the startled shouts behind me.
The dextrose line swung uselessly as I stood, still wearing the stupid hospital gown, but I didn't care.
Yes, I was a hacker.
Yes, I'd just barely clawed my way back from death.
But I was also a Taekwondo black belt.
And nobody—not fear, not weakness, not even common sense—was going to stop me now.
Before Aurelius could react, I leaned down and pressed a quick kiss against his cheek.
"For luck," I whispered.
Then I was running.
The hospital corridor blurred around me.
My bare feet slapped against cold tile floors as I sprinted outside, heart hammering.
At the curb, a guy was just getting off his Harley, whistling to himself as he adjusted his helmet.
Perfect timing.
"Sorry, emergency!" I shouted, snatching the keys straight from his hand before he could even blink.
I swung my leg over the bike in one clean move, gunning the throttle.
The engine roared to life under me like a living beast.
Behind me, I heard more yelling—Phelia, Xavier, Simon, Caleb, even my mother—but I didn't stop.
Couldn't stop.
They'd follow me. I knew they would.
They always did.
But I had a head start.
I shot down the street, weaving through cars like a bullet, the Harley growling under me, the hospital shrinking in the distance.
Adrenaline pumped through my veins harder than any IV drip ever could.
I had one destination in mind: the criminal organization's base.
Because they had Aurora.
Because they thought they could steal her future like they tried to steal mine.
They were wrong.
Dead wrong.
The city blurred past me, a whirlwind of color and noise I barely registered.
All I could focus on was the coordinates burned into my mind—the rough perimeter my mother and Vivian had shown me before I ran like a lunatic out of the hospital.
Seven miles.
Seven miles of hell.
And I was almost there.
The Harley growled under me, chewing up pavement, spitting gravel as I veered off the main roads into the rougher, forgotten parts of the city—the parts even the police didn't bother patrolling anymore.
The air turned heavier here, sharper.
Like even the wind knew who owned these streets.
My body ached. The hospital gown clung to me, sticky with sweat and blood.
Somewhere along the way, the IV puncture wound on my arm had reopened, and I could feel the slow, steady drip of blood sliding down my elbow.
But I didn't stop.
Pain was nothing.
Fear was nothing.
Only Aurora mattered.
As I neared the outskirts of the industrial sector, I spotted it.
A squat, ugly warehouse crouched between rusted factories and broken fencing.
Exactly the kind of place criminals loved—hidden in plain sight, too boring to notice.
I killed the engine a block away, letting the Harley coast to a silent stop.
Every instinct in me sharpened to a blade's edge.
I could see movement near the entrance—armed guards. Three, maybe four.
They wore plain black clothing, but they moved with the easy cruelty of men used to violence.
My fists clenched at my sides.
Good. Let them try me.
I slid off the bike carefully, crouching behind a crumbling concrete barrier.
Already, my mind was ticking through options—entry points, blind spots, angles.
The smart move would be to wait.
To fall back.
To regroup with my team.
But as I crouched there, heart pounding, breath harsh, I realized something.
I didn't want to wait.
I didn't want to play it safe anymore.
I wanted blood.
I wanted Aurora.
I wanted justice.
I licked my dry lips, tasting salt and iron, and whispered to the night:
"I want it."
My rescue.
My revenge.
My fight.
I pulled a thin, sharp piece of metal from the stolen Harley's toolkit—a makeshift weapon, crude but deadly in the right hands.
And in that moment, crouched in the dark with blood slipping down my arm and fury coiled tight in my chest...
I didn't feel broken anymore.
I felt alive.
Alive—and dangerous.
I crouched lower behind the cracked barrier, feeling the rumble before I even saw them.
Trucks.
Multiple.
Their engines snarled through the broken streets, fast and angry.
A slow, wicked smirk curved my lips.
They found me.
Headlights swept over the crumbling concrete, and the first truck skidded to a stop just yards away.
Doors slammed open almost before the tires cooled, and out spilled my people—my family.
Phelia, guns already in hand.
Xavier and Simon, checking comms with military efficiency.
Vivian barking orders, her smile sharp as a blade.
Mother, calm and lethal, slipping through the chaos like a ghost.
Caleb, eyes scanning for threats, all soldier instincts.
And there—at the front—was him.
Aurelius.
His tall frame cut through the darkness like a drawn sword, black jacket whipping around him as he marched straight toward me, a storm written all over his face.
I couldn't help it.
I smirked, resting a hip against the Harley like I owned the damn street.
"Nice speed over there, honey~" I called out, cocking my head with a playful glint in my eye.
He glared—glared—like he was ready to pick me up and personally throw me back into a hospital bed.
Before he could open that beautiful mouth of his and scold me like a pissed-off dad, I pushed off the bike, closed the distance in three quick strides, and grabbed his face between my hands.
I kissed him.
Soft and fierce at the same time—a promise, a claim, a dare.
The whole world dropped away for one beautiful second, just the heat of his mouth against mine, the thundering echo of our heartbeats.
When I pulled back, his eyes were wide, stunned, furious—and a little wrecked.
Good.
I brushed my thumb across his cheekbone and grinned up at him.
"I promise I'll be careful, daddy~" I whispered, sweet and shameless, just loud enough for him to hear—and for our stunned teammates to definitely hear too.
Somewhere behind us, Xavier choked hard enough to almost pass out.
Phelia made a strangled noise suspiciously close to a squeal.
Simon muttered, "I did not need to hear that."
Aurelius just stood there for half a second longer, breathing hard, his whole body vibrating with the need to either kill me or kiss me again.
Maybe both.
Finally, with a groan of pure resignation, he grabbed my wrist—not rough, but tight enough that I knew the lecture was coming later.
"You reckless, infuriating woman," he muttered under his breath.
I winked.
"I know," I said cheerfully. "Now let's go raise some hell."
Behind us, the team moved into formation, weapons ready, faces grim.
Ahead of us, the warehouse loomed, ugly and waiting.
Aurora was in there somewhere.
And tonight?
We weren't asking for her back.
We were taking her.
End of chapter 16.