THE SHADOW AGENT

The System's Shadows

Chapter 3: The System's Shadows

Maxwell’s POV

I took off running. As I ran into the tunnel beneath my house, the chilly air slapped my face. My lungs burned with each breath. I heard shouting behind me, with doors smashing and feet beating. They were looking for me. Lara was trying to find me.

That was a video I never wanted her to watch.

The tunnel turned to the left. I arrived at the iron hatch and gave it a violent yank. The noises above faded as I ascended the old maintenance ladder. I emerged, smeared with dirt and shame, into the alley behind Blackwood Tower.

Why now? Why reveal Nova now?

Lara had seen my face, veiled but recognisable, on the news in Prague. Lara was caught up in the disarray created by the secrets I had battled to keep hidden. The expression in her eyes, however, was what truly wounded me. It wasn't rage.

It was heartache.

She was about to lift her rifle at me when I spotted it. She did not, however, pull the trigger. She released me. And more than any gunshot, that frightened me.

"Lara, why did you let me run?" I spoke to the night in a whisper.

A few hours later, I found myself in Blackwood Global's server room. There, Dylan greeted me with alert but weary eyes.

He said, "You shouldn't be here." "You're in the news all the time."

I said, taking off my hoodie, "I had no other option." "What did you discover?"

He gave me a document. "The list of spectre kills... We verified them twice. Every former agent. Everybody is dead. Aside from one.

My throat constricted. "Who?"

"Jace. He is still alive. Seldom. Placed under false pretences in protective custody. Last week, they transferred him to a military hospital in Berlin.

One hand swept through my hair. "The ghost wishes to destroy us. Every one of us. Only Jace may be aware of Spectre's true identity.

Dylan paused. "Max... Spectre is more than just a housekeeper. He's getting support from someone in our system. A member of the board.

I went cold. "Are you certain?"

"Data spills. Asset transfers. Insider moves. Everything fits.

There was only one conclusion to that: Blackwood Global was being attacked from within. And I would lose everything if I didn't stop it.

Berlin smelled like secrets and disinfection.

Wearing a doctor's coat and a phoney badge, I sneaked into the hospital. As I pulled open the safe room door, the lights in the hallway hummed overhead. Pale and hooked up to machinery, Jace lay in bed.

His eyes opened a little.

"Jace, it's me," I said. "Nova."

With a feeble cough, a small smile appeared on his face. "Alive... still"

Seldom. Pay attention to me. Spectre is who? Something must have caught your eye.

He slowly turned his head. That person is someone we trusted. Someone around.

"Who?" I leaned closer.

However, he began to seize. There were alarms. Nurses came running in. My heart pounding, I took a step back.

I then noticed his IV bag. It was the wrong colour.

"No!" I shouted. "Avoid touching him!"

However, it was too late.

The screens went blank.

Poisoned. Directly beneath our noses.

I stood numb and motionless. Before he could utter the word, they killed him. They were observing us, whoever Spectre was. Always one step ahead.

The silence seemed oppressive back in my penthouse. I tossed the blood-stained coat into the fireplace after peeling it off.

Before I could even catch my breath, I heard the TV.

"Breaking News," declared the anchor. "Billionaire Maxwell Blackwood is the disguised agent known as Nova, according to a leaked video. An international warrant for his arrest has been issued by Interpol.

The screen was filled with my face.

They had it everything.

The door suddenly banged open.

Someone yelled, "Hands where I can see them."

She was there when I turned.

Lara.

Fire in her eyes, five agents behind her, guns drawn.

"Maxwell Blackwood, you're under arrest," she replied icily.

I realised then that I had run out of time.