45. Sienna
Sienna
T he ops room fills around me.
Maps open across one screen.
Satellite feeds pull up on another.
Cal starts running industrial sites against generator profiles while Lance brings up terrain scans and off-grid structures within possible HELIOS movement corridors.
Noise builds fast.
Voices.
Keyboard clicks.
Radio chatter.
Too much.
I shut it all out.
“Play the clip again.”
This time, no one argues.
Cal hits the key.
Elizabeth appears on the screen.
My chest tightens hard enough to hurt, but I don’t break.
Not now.
I dissect.
Frame by frame.
“Pause.”
The image freezes with Elizabeth looking slightly past the camera.
Not at it.
Past it.
I step closer until the screen glow washes across my face.
“That shadow. Shift the contrast.”
Cal adjusts the image.
The darkness behind Elizabeth sharpens.
“There.” I point.
Lance leans in. “That’s structural?”
“No.” I shake my head. “Movement.”
The room goes quieter.
Ronan steps closer. “Someone’s in there with her?”
“I’m saying someone is always in there with her.”
The words land heavy.
Controlled.
Ugly.
I zoom in on the shadow again, watching the edge shift near the wall behind Elizabeth’s chair.
Not accidental.
Not from the camera.
A guard.
Close enough to reach her.
Far enough to stay mostly out of frame.
“They’re not hiding her,” I say.
My voice stays calm now.
Too calm.
“They’re guarding her.”
Ronan’s jaw tightens. “High-value asset.”
“No.”
I look at Elizabeth’s frozen face on the screen.
At the fear she tried to hide.
At the message she sent me beneath the words she was forced to say.
My hands stop shaking.
Not because I’m less afraid.
Because fear has finally become something useful.
“She’s their leverage.”