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Chapter 27: The Ashes and the Answer
Daylight broke over a broken mountain.
Snowflakes drifted down like ashes. The once-mighty Kane facility was nothing more than scorched earth and frozen ruin.
Eliot knelt at the edge of the crater. His hands were bleeding, his eyes hollow.
No sign of Rina.
No sign of Lena.
Just smoke. Ice. Silence.
Savannah limped over, wrapped in a thermal cloak. She didn't speak. She just placed a hand on his shoulder.
"I should've stopped her," Eliot whispered.
"No," Savannah said. "You trusted her."
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Hours passed.
Then—a flicker.
A light.
From beneath the rubble, a small drone emerged. Damaged, sparking, but flying. It hovered toward Eliot and dropped a data chip.
He grabbed it.
Plugged it into his scanner.
And there it was.
> UPLOAD SUCCESSFUL
Kane's systems: Destroyed
Athena Protocol: Neutralized
Below the message… one final transmission.
Rina's voice.
> "If you're hearing this… I made it. And so did she."
Eliot froze.
"She's alive?" Savannah asked.
He smiled for the first time in days.
"She's alive. And she's not done yet."
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Author's Note:
The fire didn't finish her. Rina lives. And her story is only beginning. If this chapter gave you hope—don't forget to add Billionaire in Disguise to your library. Your support brings every chapter to life.
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