Chapter 24
Kara
Well.
Here goes nothing.
Just before six p.m., I stood on the pavement outside a skyscraper that stabbed into the sky, its mirrored surface throwing back the skyline.
ARCHEON’s headquarters, or at least one of them.
There was no sign outside the door, no name, just a clean facade and a hundred security cameras that pretended not to see you.
The sun had set an hour or so ago, and the city had come alive. Roman stood beside me. To anyone else, he looked like another billionaire on business. To me, he looked like a loaded gun.
The mirrored glass doors hissed open. Three men in black suits stepped out. No logos, no insignia, but I knew who they were. I’d seen them before. They were ARCHEON operatives. One of them checked a small tablet, his expression all business.
“Ms. Lennox,” he said. “Mr. Markov. This way.”
I felt Roman’s hand brush my lower back. Then it was gone in the next blink of an eye before he lightly shoved me forward. I feigned a gasp and stumbled, knowing it was all a part of the ruse that I was the Markovs’ captive and they were just handing me over in exchange for Lev.
We followed them through the marble atrium. The air inside smelled like disinfectant and money. Every surface gleamed, all white marble, chrome fixtures, and glass walls. It was too clean, too perfect. It was the kind of place where people disappeared without a trace.
The elevator ride up was silent. I could see our reflections in the mirrored walls, my face pale but composed, Roman’s jaw tight, his hand flexing once at his side. The men flanked us, weapons hidden under their tailored jackets. My pulse drummed in my ears.
When the doors opened, I took a deep breath.
We were all the way at the top of the building.
They led us through a corridor lined with glass offices, each one filled with identical desks and identical people pretending not to look at us. The hum of technology was a constant buzz.
At the end of the hall stood a pair of double doors made of frosted glass. One of the men pressed his hand to a scanner. The locks disengaged with a hiss.
“Inside,” he said.
Roman went first. I followed.
The office we walked into was enormous. It looked more like a gallery than a workspace with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the sprawl of the city, with abstract art on the walls and a single desk made of black glass at the center. Behind it sat the man himself.
The vice president of ARCHEON.
He was in his forties, maybe, dressed in a luxurious designer suit, his skin pale against the black fabric.
His hair was close-cropped and peppered with gray.
His eyes were empty, though. Not cruel, not kind.
Just empty. From what I knew of him, he was the kind of man who didn’t see people, only outcomes. A sociopath.
He rose as we entered, a polite smile flickering across his lips. “Mr. Markov. Ms. Lennox. How pleasant of you to join us.” His British accent almost made his words feel welcoming.
Roman’s voice was smooth, clipped, controlled. “You have something that belongs to me.”
“Indeed.” The man’s gaze slid over me before returning to Roman. “And you seem to have been playing with something that belongs to us for a bit too long.”
The agent nearest the desk gestured toward me. “Please, Ms. Lennox. Step forward.”
Roman didn’t move, didn’t look at me, didn’t even breathe. He played the role of the detached negotiator perfectly.
It shouldn’t have hurt, but it did, just a little bit.
I knew what he was doing. I knew this was part of the plan, to make them believe I meant nothing to him, but watching him stand there, so calm, so cold, as I took one step forward, still made my chest feel tight.
I stood just behind him now, and lifted my chin, pretending to be stronger than I currently felt.
The vice president gestured to one of his aides. “Show him the asset.”
A moment later, the doors at the back of the office opened. Two guards stepped forward, dragging someone between them.
Lev.
He looked a little rough, with a bit of blood dried at the corner of his mouth and his shirt torn, but it could have been so much worse. His eyes lifted as they brought him in, and for a brief, suspended moment, they met mine. Recognition flared there, quickly followed by disbelief.
“Lev Markov,” the vice president said, his tone almost conversational. “You’ve been our guest for a little while now. I trust the accommodations were tolerable.”
Lev’s laugh was dry. “You call this hospitality?”
The vice president smiled faintly. “You’ll forgive our methods. They were necessary.”
Roman took a slow step forward. Both his voice and the expression on his face were dangerously threatening now. “He’s coming with me.”
The vice president regarded him for a moment, then nodded to his men. “Of course. After all, we’re reasonable people.”
The guards pulled Lev forward by his upper arm. For the moment, he went along with it, his eyes flicking from Roman to me and back again. “What the hell is this?”
“A trade,” I said quietly.
Lev’s expression hardened. “No.”
The vice president’s smile widened. “Yes. For now, at least. We’ll have our agent back, and you’ll have your brother. An equitable trade, wouldn’t you say?”
Roman’s jaw tightened. “Release him first.”
“Ah,” the vice president said, his tone polite but condescending. “That’s not how this works.”
I felt the air shift beside me, that subtle change in pressure that meant Roman was one second away from drawing his gun. I reached out, lightly brushing his forearm with my fingers. It was enough. He stilled, but I could feel the tension emanating from him anyway.
“It’s fine,” I said, forcing my voice to stay even. “I’ll go.”
The VP’s smile was shark-like. “Excellent.”
The guards moved toward me. One of them reached for my arm, and Roman’s hand shot out, gripping the man’s wrist hard enough to make him freeze. The tension in the room spiked.
“You lay one finger on her before he’s free,” Roman said, his voice lethal, “and you’ll lose the whole fucking hand.”
The guard hesitated, looking at his boss, who gave a small nod.
“Release him,” he ordered.
They finally cut the bindings from Lev’s wrists. Roman’s eyes never left him.
Mr. Vice-Pres gestured again. “Now, Ms. Lennox.”
I swallowed hard. Every instinct screamed at me to run, to fight, but I forced myself to move forward. Roman didn’t look at me; he couldn’t. That was the plan. As I passed by him, though, his fingers brushed mine for half a second. I breathed a sigh of relief.
I stepped toward the vice president. “You have what you came for.”
“Not yet,” he said, his eyes cold. “We still need to ensure your… cooperation.”
I saw the faintest twitch of his hand.
Before I could react, a sharp and pointy something pressed against my neck. There was a quick prick and a subsequent rush of heat that seemed to shoot straight into my brain.
My knees buckled. The room blurred.
Lev’s and Roman’s voices broke through the noise, a combined roar of fury that made the air itself shake. “Kara!”
Hands grabbed me, dragging me backward. I tried to fight, but my body wasn’t listening anymore. The last thing I saw before the darkness swallowed me was Lev lunging forward, Roman holding him back, and then nothing.
Just darkness.