For one heartbeat, the room was silent.
Then—
The vent above them gave another metallic twitch.
Liam reacted first.
"Aria, move," he whispered sharply, pulling her behind him.
Kayden stepped forward, shoulders squared, jaw tight, eyes scanning every shadow like he already knew the danger by name.
Aria's pulse hammered.
Her lungs refused to fill.
Someone was in the vents.
Someone was listening.
Someone who had followed them from the moment the file dropped from the shelf.
Kayden's voice was barely audible. "They're inside the building."
Liam nodded once. "Which means they're not here to warn us."
Aria's throat tightened.
"They're here for me."
Kayden shot her a look — fierce, protective, raw.
"They're not taking you."
A thud sounded above them — heavier, closer — like someone dragging something along the metal duct.
Aria flinched.
Kayden stepped closer to her instantly, shielding her with his body.
Liam raised a hand, signaling silence.
Another thud.
Then a second one.
Then—
A foot dropped through the vent.
A boot.
Gloved hands gripping the edges.
A mask hiding the face.
Aria's breath vanished.
Liam shoved her backward.
Kayden lunged forward.
The masked intruder jumped down smoothly, landing with a soft thud that sent dust drifting through the air.
He didn't speak.
Didn't threaten.
Didn't warn.
He just reached toward Aria.
A hand.
Not fast.
Not slow.
Confident — like he expected no one could stop him.
Kayden grabbed the man's wrist mid-air, twisting sharply.
"You picked the wrong girl," he growled.
The man didn't flinch.
He twisted his own arm free with practiced ease and slammed a shoulder into Kayden's chest, sending him stumbling.
Liam was already moving — grabbing Aria's hand, pulling her toward the exit.
"Run!"
But the masked intruder leaped forward with alarming speed, cutting off their escape. Liam shoved Aria behind him again, bracing himself.
Kayden regained his footing, sprinting toward them.
Aria blinked, chest tight, lungs burning.
Her vision sharpened unnaturally, outlining every motion — every shift, every breath, every flicker of movement.
Why was everything so clear?
Why could she hear the intruder's heartbeat?
Why could she feel Liam's fear?
Kayden's rage?
A strange thrumming pulsed beneath her skin, like electricity rushing through her veins.
"Aria," Liam said without looking back, "stay behind us."
She tried.
But the masked man moved again, this time faster — heading straight for her.
Kayden barreled into him with full force, slamming him against the wall.
Liam pulled Aria toward the corner, voice low and urgent. "We need to get you out—"
The masked intruder shoved Kayden off, hitting him hard enough to send him crashing into a shelf.
Books rained down.
Kayden grunted, pushing himself up.
Aria's heart lurched.
"STOP!"
It wasn't a scream.
It wasn't a whisper.
It was something else — something that reverberated through the air, vibrating against the shelves, the walls, the windows.
The masked man froze.
Kayden froze.
Even Liam's eyes widened.
Aria clutched her chest as heat surged through her veins — a bright, painful burst that made her stumble forward.
"What was that?" she whispered.
Kayden stared at her like she had just moved the earth beneath them.
"That wasn't normal," he breathed.
Liam moved toward her cautiously. "Aria… what did you feel?"
Before she could answer, the masked man shook off the shock and lunged at her again — faster this time, ruthless and silent.
Aria didn't think.
Her body did.
She lifted her hand — just lifted it — and something inside her snapped open like a door slamming off its hinges.
A force erupted outward.
Not visible.
Not loud.
But powerful — a sudden burst of pressure that slammed into the masked intruder like a physical blow.
He flew back several feet, crashing into a table.
Kayden and Liam stared at her.
Aria stared at her own hands.
"I didn't— I didn't touch him," she whispered, horrified. "I didn't even move. I just—"
Kayden stepped toward her slowly, eyes burning with shock and something else.
"Aria… that was your father."
She shook her head violently.
"No. No, I didn't—"
"That was your inheritance," Liam said quietly. "It's waking up."
The masked intruder groaned, lifting himself slightly — dazed but still conscious.
Kayden's expression hardened.
"We don't have time," he said. "Aria, we need to go. Now."
Liam grabbed her hand again, his touch warm, grounding.
Kayden moved to her other side.
For the first time, Aria wasn't being protected.
She was being brought somewhere because of what she could do.
Because of what she might become.
"Where are we going?" she whispered as they moved quickly toward the emergency exit door in the back.
Liam answered without hesitation.
"To the only person left who knows what your father really did."
Aria's voice cracked. "Who?"
Kayden pushed open the door.
Cold night air rushed in.
He turned to her — eyes catching the moonlight, intense and unshakable.
"Your father's partner."