Chapter 86 Jonah
Jonah
The door gives under my shoulder.
Hard.
Wood splinters, frame cracking as it flies inward and I move with it—weapon up, clearing left—
Then right—
Nothing.
Too clean.
Too quiet.
My pulse kicks up as I step inside, every instinct I have on edge.
“Clear,” Ronan mutters behind me, but his tone says the same thing mine is thinking.
This isn’t right.
I move forward slowly, scanning the room.
Empty.
No equipment.
No visible tech.
No sign of the system I was just inside.
Which means one thing.
“She’s here,” I say.
Ronan shifts slightly. “Yeah. Question is—where?”
I don’t answer.
Because I feel it.
That same pull from earlier.
Stronger now.
Closer.
Like I’m standing on top of it.
My gaze drops.
The floor.
A seam.
Barely visible—but it’s there.
“Found it.”
I move before Ronan can respond, crouching, fingers sliding along the edge until I find the latch hidden just beneath the surface.
Clever.
Too clean to be rushed.
This was built.
Planned.
My grip tightens as I pull it open.
A narrow set of stairs disappears into darkness below.
No light.
No sound.
Just—
Waiting.
Ronan exhales slowly. “You first or me?”
“I’ve got it.”
I don’t hesitate.
I descend.
Each step is measured. Silent. Controlled.
Weapon steady.
Eyes adjusting to the low light as the space below comes into view.
Not a bunker.
Not a server room.
Something in between.
Minimal equipment.
Portable.
Temporary.
Like she never meant to stay long.
My pulse picks up as I clear the bottom step—
And then I see her.
She’s not sitting calmly.
Not composed.
Not waiting like she was in the system.
She’s standing near a makeshift workstation, one hand braced against the table like she caught herself mid-movement. Hair in a messy bun, the bluest eyes I have ever seen. She’s not beautiful in a model sort of way; this woman is gorgeous in her own way.
Breathing slightly heavier than she should be.
Like she’s been running.
Or pushing herself too far.
Her head lifts the second I step into the room.
Eyes locking onto mine.
And for a split second—
Everything stops.
Because she’s real.
Not a voice.
Not code.
Not something I can shut down.
A woman.
Alive.
Sharp.
And a hell of a lot more vulnerable than she let on.
My grip tightens on my weapon.
But I don’t raise it further.
Don’t fire.
Don’t move.
Because she doesn’t either.
We just stand there.
Looking at each other like we’re both recalculating everything we thought we knew.
“You’re earlier than expected,” she says.
Her voice is steady.
But there’s strain under it.
I hear it.
File it away.
“You gave me the location,” I reply.
A beat.
Then—
“You came anyway.”
Not a question.
A statement.
Like she’s still surprised by it.
“Yeah,” I say.
Ronan steps down behind me, covering the room.
“Jonah—”
“I see her.”
I don’t take my eyes off Sienna.
Not for a second.
Because she’s watching me just as closely.
Measuring.
Weighing.
Deciding.
Same as I am.
“You’re Sienna Knox,” I say.
Her chin lifts slightly.
“Yes.”
No hesitation.
No denial.
I take a step forward.
She doesn’t back up.
Doesn’t flinch.
But I see the tension in her shoulders.
The way she’s holding herself upright through force of will.
“You’ve been inside ORACLE,” I say.
Another step.
Still no retreat.
“Yes.”
“You rewrote it.”
A pause.
Then—
“Yes.”
Calm.
Controlled.
But not unaffected.
Not anymore.
Good.
That makes this real.
That makes this dangerous.
“They’re coming for you,” I say.
“I know.”
“You let me find you.”
“I did.”
No apology.
No excuse.
Just truth.
That lands harder than anything else.
Because it means this wasn’t chance.
Wasn’t luck.
Wasn’t even a mistake.
She chose me.
My jaw tightens.
“Why?”
For the first time—
She hesitates.
It’s small.
Almost invisible.
But it’s there.
Then—
“Because you’re the only one who followed,” she says. “The only one who didn’t try to shut it down the second you saw it.”
Her eyes hold mine.
Steady.
Searching.
“And the only one who might understand what’s coming.”
Ronan shifts slightly behind me. “Or the only one dumb enough to walk into it.”
I ignore him.
Because I’m still looking at her.
Still seeing the difference between what she showed me before…
And what she is now.
She’s not in control here.
Not completely.
Not physically.
And that changes everything.
My gaze drops for half a second.
Her hand.
Still braced on the table.
Tremor.
Small.
But real.
She’s exhausted.
Running on fumes.
Pushing past her limit.
And still standing.
That tells me more than anything else she’s said.
“You should’ve told me,” I say.
Her brows pull slightly. “Told you what?”
“That you weren’t just in the system.”
Something flickers in her expression.
Not guilt.
Not regret.
Something closer to—
Acceptance.
“I needed to know if you’d come,” she says.
“You used me.”
“Yes.”
The honesty hits like a punch.
Sharp.
Clean.
Unapologetic.
And I respect it more than I should.
“They’ll be here soon,” she adds, quieter now. “Helios doesn’t miss something like this for long.”
“I know.”
“You don’t have time to stand here deciding what to do.”
I almost laugh.
Because she still thinks I’m deciding.
I step closer.
Close enough now that I can see every detail.
The strain in her eyes.
The tension in her jaw.
The way she’s holding herself together through sheer will.
“You’re coming with me,” I say.
There it is.
The shift.
Her entire posture tightens.
“No.”
Immediate.
Firm.
Expected.
“I’m not leaving.”
“Yeah,” I say calmly. “You are.”
“I can’t.”
“That’s not what I said.”
Her eyes flash.
Anger.
Fear.
Something deeper.
“You don’t understand—”
“I understand enough.”
I reach for her.
Not rough.
Not aggressive.
But not optional either.
Her breath catches slightly as my hand closes around her wrist.
Warm.
Real.
Not code.
Not a ghost.
Her.
“I’m not a problem you can extract,” she snaps.
“Good,” I fire back. “Because I’m not here to fix you.”
That stops her.
Just for a second.
Long enough.
“We’re leaving,” I say, voice lower now. Steady. Unmovable. “You can fight me on it, or you can walk.”
Her chest rises and falls a little faster now.
She searches my face.
Looking for doubt.
For hesitation.
For anything she can use.
She won’t find it.
Because I made the decision the second I saw her standing there trying to hold herself together.
This isn’t about the system anymore.
It’s about her.
“They’ll track us,” she says.
“Let them.”
“You don’t know what they’re capable of.”
I hold her gaze.
“Then they’re about to find out what I am.”
Silence hits.
Heavy.
Charged.
And for the first time—
Something in her expression shifts.
Not control.
Not calculation.
Something softer.
More dangerous.
Trust.
Barely there.
But enough.
She exhales slowly.
Not surrender.
Not fully.
But close.
“Fine,” she says.
I don’t let go of her wrist.
Don’t step back.
Don’t give her space to change her mind.
“Stay close,” I tell her.
Ronan moves toward the stairs. “We’ve got maybe two minutes before this place lights up.”
“Then we don’t waste them.”
I guide her forward.
Not dragging.
Not forcing.
But not letting her fall behind either.
Because she’s not steady.
Not completely.
And I’m not taking chances.
Not with her.
Not now.
We hit the stairs.
Move fast.
Controlled.
Up into the dark.
And the second we clear the top—
The world explodes.
Gunfire tears through the silence outside.
Ronan drops low. “Contact!”
I pull Sienna behind me without thinking, positioning her instantly out of the line of fire.
Her hand tightens in mine.
Not pulling away.
Holding on.
“Stay behind me,” I say.
And this time—
She doesn’t argue.
Dear reader.
Thank you, for your continued support. I really appreciate that you read my books.