Page 97 of Knight

"Two ahead," Rook warns through comms. "Right on schedule. Taking position."

I check my tablet, scanning through security feeds. The facility's systems are good, but not impossible to bypass. Each checkpoint requires specific codes, but nothing I can't handle. What concerns me is how the security is layered. It’s designed to keep people contained rather than just out. The kind of setup that suggests they've done this before.

The guards pass without noticing us, their focus locked on their patterns. Rook handles them with brutal efficiency. Two thuds. Two groans. Then silence. Eva flinches at the sound but stays pressed to the wall.

"Clear to move." Rook's voice is calm and clear. "Next checkpoint in twenty seconds."

We slip deeper into the facility, every step a risk. Eva mirrors my movements without a word, sticking to our plan. The next lock is trickier, each second at the panel cranking the tensionhigher. When it finally unlocks, a new sound rises—the low hum of high-powered servers.

We’re close.

"Movement ahead." Bishop's warning comes just as my tablet highlights a guard breaking from his route. Not part of the drill. A random patrol that could blow everything.

“Perfect timing,” I mutter under my breath, grabbing Eva and pulling her into a shadowed alcove. Her heartbeat drums against my chest, loud enough to make me wonder if the guard can hear it too.

The guard slows, head tilting like he’s caught something. My hand moves toward my gun. I calculate the odds.

Shoot him and risk an immediate alert, or gamble that he’ll move on.

His radio squawks, the drill commanders barking for his location, and he shifts back to his route.

Eva lets out a shaky exhale. I lean down, lips brushing her ear. “You’re doing great. Just keep breathing. And for the love of God, stop vibrating like a terrified rabbit.”

The faintest glare flickers in her eyes, but my words have the desired result, and she falls in behind me as we push forward.

The development area’s door is layered with security designed to keep people in, not out. Breaching it is slow, grueling work. Every second drags, each one amplifying the risk of discovery.

“Ready?” I glance back at Eva, her tension visible in every line of her body. She nods, and I finish the sequence. The lock disengages with a soft click.

Inside, the glow of multiple monitors illuminates two figures. My breath catches at the sight of Victor, bent over a keyboard with the kind of intensity I remember from my training. Beside him, another man sits, fingers moving across his own keyboard. Both are completely focused on the screens in front of them.

Victor’s head snaps up at the sound of our footsteps, his sharp gaze locking on me. The other man turns slower, disbelief etched into his face when he spots Eva.

Michael, then.

“Time to go.” I scan the feeds again as Eva rushes to her brother. “We’ve got three minutes before this place shifts into full lockdown.”

“You’ve cut it close, boy,” Victor says, his stiff movements betraying hours of confinement. “But then, you never did like a simple job.”

I flash him a quick smirk. “You know me. If it’s not complicated, I’m not interested.”

“Eva?” Michael’s voice is hoarse, like it hasn’t been used in days. “How did you …”

“Later,” I snap, already redirecting us. “Sentimental moments can wait until we’re not one screwup away from getting shot.”

The return route starts smooth, but the tension never fades. Each step feels like tempting fate. Then it happens.

An alarm blares in the distance. Part of the drill. Expected. But my shoulders tighten anyway.

We’realmostout.Almostclear when a second alarm goes off. A sharp, angry tone that slices through the air.

“Fuck.”

“Perimeter guard found his friends,” Rook’s voice is calm. “Full response incoming. Eight targets moving to secure exits.”

“Fantastic.” I push the group forward. “Just what I needed to make my morning complete.”

Gunfire erupts behind us—too far to hit but close enough to freeze everyone in place.

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