Chapter 11: Blood Between Walls
The rain had stopped, but the world hadn't calmed.
Elira stared through the broken window of the abandoned hideout, her heartbeat a steady thrum of tension. Ares stood nearby, arms crossed, while Luka leaned against the far wall, his face bruised, eyes hollow. Trust had become a fragile thread between them.
"You're telling me Crane has my mother," Elira said at last, her voice low, dangerous.
Luka nodded. "She was Delgado's wife. Real name: Vira Antonov. Thought to be dead after the fire in Moscow. But Crane found her—hid her."
Ares's jaw clenched. "And you helped him."
"I had no choice," Luka growled. "He threatened to kill her if I didn't deliver Elira alive."
"You still should've told me," Elira said. Her tone wasn't angry—it was shattered.
Luka's voice cracked. "Would you have listened?"
Noah entered, holding a tablet. "Found something. Crane's black site. It's beneath the ruins of Horizon Labs, under the East River. Sealed, guarded, off-grid. No signal in or out."
Ares looked at Elira. "We're going in?"
Elira met his gaze, eyes sharp. "We're going in."
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Horizon – Below the River
Two hours later, the team descended through a drainage shaft hidden behind a collapsed subway line. The air grew colder the deeper they went, until finally the walls gave way to smooth, reinforced concrete. Blue lights hummed overhead. The silence screamed.
Noah tapped into a side panel. "Multiple surveillance nodes. Heavily encrypted."
"Can you shut it down?" Ares asked.
"I can try."
Luka handed Elira a compact pistol. "Non-lethal rounds. Just in case."
She didn't take it. "If Crane is using my mother as leverage, I won't hesitate."
Luka nodded. "Then I won't either."
They moved deeper into the black site—silent halls lined with observation windows, flickering monitors, and broken glass. The further they went, the stronger Elira's head pounded.
Memories.
Flashes of her childhood. A lullaby in Russian. A woman with sharp eyes and soft hands.
"Down here," Noah whispered, pointing to a secured door.
Ares placed a charge on the lock. "On my mark…"
Boom.
The door blew open—revealing a small observation room and a single figure inside.
A woman in her fifties sat chained to a chair, pale, worn, and bruised—but with fire still burning in her gaze.
She looked up as they entered.
And whispered, "Elira…?"
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A Truth She Didn't Expect
Elira froze.
The woman's voice was exactly as she remembered from the lullabies. Her breath hitched.
"You… know me?" Elira stepped forward.
"I am your mother," the woman said, voice trembling. "Vira Antonov Delgado."
Ares held up his gun, uncertain. "She could be lying."
But Elira stepped closer.
Vira looked up with tear-filled eyes. "I gave birth to you. I held you when you cried. And then… they took you. Delgado told me you died in the fire—but Crane lied. He kept me alive to manipulate your future."
Luka's voice was low. "He needed her alive to control Elira's design."
Elira felt dizzy. "So I'm not… just an experiment?"
Vira gripped her hand. "No. You are mine. And you were born with a gift they wanted to exploit."
Tears spilled down Elira's cheeks.
Ares lowered his gun.
"Let's get her out of here," Elira whispered.
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But They Were Not Alone
An alarm blared.
Noah shouted through comms. "They're here! Crane's men just dropped in from the river tunnel! Armed—at least eight!"
"Back exit, now!" Ares barked, helping Vira up.
But gunfire echoed through the halls.
Smoke. Bullets. Chaos.
Luka turned to Elira. "Go. I'll cover the rear."
"Luka—"
He gave her a half-smile. "I owe you that much."
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A Goodbye in the Dark
As Elira and Ares pulled Vira through the lower level, gunfire echoed behind them. Noah was shouting in their earpieces. Explosions rocked the ceiling.
They reached the final corridor… and Luka wasn't there.
Elira turned. "He's not—"
Then the radio clicked.
Luka's voice came through.
"Elira… You were never a weapon to me."
"Don't look back."
And then—silence.
The hall behind them collapsed in flame.
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