Dominic's fingers flew over the keys, his jaw set tight, eyes locked on the encrypted feeds blinking across his screen. His team moved around him in the temporary setup they'd created inside the mobile command unit, but all he could focus on was one thing: Ava.
She was gone.
Raiden had moved her.
And Dominic was two steps behind.
"Damn it," he cursed under his breath, hacking into the surveillance grid that lined the countryside between the mansion and the city. For once, his speed wasn't enough Raiden was good, calculated, and always three exits ahead. But Dominic Vale was desperate.
Every camera flickered before his eyes until—
There. A car. Black, tinted windows. Paused near a pharmacy at the edge of the city square.
Dominic leaned forward, his voice sharp. "Found the rat."
He pinged the license plate, cross-referenced with the street cams, and tracked the trail straight into the chaotic sea of color and light the city square, where a cultural festival was in full swing.
He barked into his comms, "Driver, head to the festival square now. And tell the teams: Raiden's men are likely in the crowd. Neutralize them quietly. Ava's in that square I want her found before they even breathe in her direction."
His chest tightened. She's out there.
Not in some secure place . Not behind some reinforced steel door. But out there free and alone.
His heartbeat thundered. She was fighting. Of course she was. Ava wasn't a damsel. She never had been. But the very thought of her having to claw her way through this hell on her own made his fists clench. He trusted her strength.
But he wasn't going to make her prove it.
Not alone.
---
Ava pressed herself against the cold brick wall of a narrow black alley, her breath ragged. The festival was alive with music, colors, and people dancing, celebrating but none of them knew she had escaped something monstrous.
The jacket and cap she wore blended her in well. The man who'd left the pharmacy hadn't even looked twice when she slipped past.
But now
She touched her wrist, wincing at the dried blood. The rope burn was worse than it looked, but she had no time to think about pain.
Only escape.
Only survival.
She heard footsteps quick, sharp, closing in. Raiden's men.
Ava darted deeper into the alley, found a loose metal pipe beside the trash bin and gripped it. Her palms slick, her stance ready. If they came she wouldn't run again.
She was done running.
A figure turned the corner, heavy footsteps echoing.
"Boss says you come back quiet"
CRACK!
The metal pipe slammed into his side. He groaned, staggered.
"Or what?" Ava said, stepping forward, eyes blazing.
Another man came at her, grabbing her from behind. She elbowed him in the gut, turned, and landed a hard kick to his thigh. He dropped, cursing. She didn't wait. She ran.
But this time
This time, she wasn't running away. She was drawing them out.
She twisted into a busier area and ducked into an alleyway that looped around, drawing them in. When the first man came through, she knocked a trash lid off and slammed it against his back. He collapsed, stunned.
The second lunged, but
Before he could grab her, she swung the rod, striking his hand. He cried out in pain. The other lunged, but Ava ducked and kicked at his knee, sending him stumbling into the wall.
Adrenaline flooded her system as she fought. She didn't need a knight in shining armor. She was the storm.
She landed another hit. But one of them caught her by the arm, twisting it back. She cried out but she didn't stop struggling. Not until another figure emerged from the shadows like a phantom.
A fist collided with the attacker's face. Hard.
Dominic Vale.
As he saw the sight of her hair loose, breathing ragged, blood on her wrists, fighting like hell something in him snapped. He jolted at her view, at the way she fiercely defended herself. But the moment the man dared to grab her, Dominic couldn't control the urge to make him pay.
He dragged the man back and struck him again. And again. Not stopping until the man slumped to the ground.
The second one tried to flee, but Dominic's men were already there quick, silent, lethal.
A familiar voice growled, "Move, and I swear I'll break more than your pride."
Dominic.
She turned, chest heaving. His tall figure emerged from the end of the alley, obsidian eyes scanning until they found hers.
Relief poured into her chest.
But she stood tall. Bloodied. Breathing hard. Still holding that damn metal pipe.
Dominic strode to her, pulled her into a quick, hard hug, his voice tight. "You did good. Real good. But I'm here now."
She exhaled, still stubborn. "I didn't need your saving."
He smirked. "I know. I just needed to see you."
They stood like that, in silence surrounded by unconscious guards and the fading festival music two warriors reunited in a war neither of them fully understood.
But one thing was certain:
Raiden had underestimated them both.
And that was going to cost him everything.
---