The silence after Andrew's escape was deafening. Ceil stood motionless, fixed on the empty hallway where Andrew had vanished. His expression was unreadable, but Velena could feel the storm brewing beneath it.
Lucian's voice crackled through the earpiece again. "What the hell just happened?"
Ceil exhaled sharply, still gripping the gun in his hand. He was here. Face-to-face.
Lucian cursed. "And you let him walk away?"
Ceil's jaw tightened. "He didn't come to fight. He came to send a message."
Velena swallowed, her grip tightening on the knife she still held. "A message about what?"
Ceil's piercing gaze flickered to her. "You."
A chill ran down Velena's spine.
She took a shaky breath. "What does that mean?"
Ceil turned away, his movements sharp and controlled. "It means we're out of time."
A TRAIL OF CLUES...
They moved back to the control room, Lucian already waiting with the laptop open.
"I pulled up every known record on Andrew Steel," Lucian said, typing rapidly. "But the guy is a ghost. He vanished years ago, just like we thought."
Velena frowned. "Then how is he back now?"
Lucian's expression darkened. "Because someone kept him hidden."
Ceil crossed his arms. "Who?"
Lucian hesitated before pulling up another file. "This is where things get complicated."
He turned the screen toward them. A document appeared, old and faded.
Velena's stomach twisted as she read the title: Project Revenant.
She took a step back. "No," she whispered. "Not this again."
Ceil's eyes darkened. "It never ended, Velena."
THE FORGOTTEN CONNECTION...
Ceil grabbed a USB from the desk and plugged it into the system. "There's something we missed."
The files loaded, and Velena's breath caught when she saw the first image.
A photo.
Of her.
Velena as a child, standing outside an old, abandoned building. Next to her—Andrew Steel.
Her hands went cold.
Ceil's voice was sharp. "Explain this."
She shook her head, panic rising. "I—I don't remember."
Ceil's fingers drummed against the desk, his expression unreadable. "Try harder."
Velena squeezed her eyes shut, forcing herself to think. A flash of memory.
A cold, dimly lit room. A voice whispering in her ear.
"Don't forget, Velena. Don't ever forget."
Her eyes snapped open, her breathing uneven.
She knew now. She had met Andrew Steel before. And somehow—he had been protecting her.
THE TRUTH NO ONE SAW COMING...
Velena staggered back, gripping the table for support. "Ceil... he wasn't after me."
Ceil frowned. "What?"
Velena's throat was dry. "Andrew. He wasn't hunting me that night in Vladivostok. He was saving me."
Lucian cursed under his breath.
Ceil didn't move. Didn't react. But Velena could see the shift in his eyes.
Everything they thought they knew—it was wrong.
Ceil clenched his jaw. "Then who the hell were you running from?"
Velena forced herself to say it.
"Your father."
The air in the room changed.
Lucian stiffened. Ceil's expression turned to stone.
Velena's voice was barely above a whisper. "Ceil... I think your father was the one who wanted me dead.
THE TRUTH RUNS DEEPER...
A long, suffocating silence followed. Velena could hear the faint hum of the monitors, the distant sound of the wind rattling against the windows. But nothing compared to the weight of Ceil's silence. He was processing, breaking apart every belief he had built about his father. The man he had spent years avenging—the one he had sworn justice for—wasn't the victim. He was the thread. And the worst part? Ceil wasn't sure if he had ever truly known him at all.
Velena took a hesitant step forward, her voice softer now. "Ceil..."
He didn't respond.
His eyes were still locked on the screen, but Velena could see the way his fingers had curled into fists. He wasn't just angry. He was unraveling.
Because if his father had been the real monster in the story, then everything Ceil had fought for—every piece of revenge, every move he had made—had been built on a lie.