The first move
999 Words
Chapter Seven:
The briefcase sat onAdelina’s kitchen table like a ticking time bomb. She had barely slept, her mind circling the same thoughts over and over again. Project Revenant. Dominic Vance. Gideon’s orders. And Alexander.
She had spent years believing she was just another nameless girl scraping by in a world that had already written her off. But now? Now she was tangled in a web of secrets and power plays that she barely understood. And there was no turning back.
The instructions were clear—she had to infiltrate one of Vance’s private offices and retrieve a specific set of digital files. It was a high-risk job, one that required skill, precision, and a certain level of recklessness. And yet, despite the danger, a part of her felt… alive.
Adelina exhaled sharply and pulled out her laptop. If she was going to do this, she needed to do her homework.
Step One: Know the Enemy
She spent the next few hours researching Dominic Vance. Every article, every whispered rumor, every police report that had conveniently disappeared. He was a businessman on the surface—real estate, tech investments, security firms—but beneath that, he was a ghost. A man who moved pieces across the board without ever getting his hands dirty.
And Project Revenant? Nothing. No records. No leaks. Whatever it was, it was buried deep.
Frustration gnawed at her. How could she prepare for something when she didn’t even know what she was up against?
Her phone buzzed.
Unknown Number: You’re taking too long. Move now.
A chill ran down her spine. Mara.
Adelina clenched her jaw. She hated being watched. Hated feeling like a pawn. But she had no choice.
She grabbed her jacket, pocketed a USB drive, and set out into the night.
The office was located in a high-rise downtown. Not Vance’s main headquarters, but a smaller, less conspicuous location. The kind of place that stored things too sensitive to keep in the open.
Adelina had scoped the building earlier. Two guards at the entrance. Security cameras covering every hallway. A biometric scanner on the executive floor. It was a fortress.
But every fortress had a weakness.
Dressed in a sleek black outfit that passed for a cocktail dress, she walked confidently toward the lobby, heels clicking against the marble floor. Her heart pounded, but she kept her expression calm. The receptionist barely glanced at her as she strode toward the elevators.
Phase One: Look like you belong.
She pulled out a stolen employee badge—one she had lifted off an unsuspecting tech worker at a café earlier that day—and held it up to the scanner. A tense second passed.
Beep.
She was in.
She stepped into the elevator, exhaling slowly as the doors shut behind her.
Phase Two: Find the Office.
The elevator ride felt endless. The higher she ascended, the more she felt the walls closing in. She forced herself to focus. The files she needed were stored on a specific server, in an office on the 18th floor.
When the doors opened, she slipped out silently, keeping her footsteps light against the carpeted floor. The hallway was empty. Too easy.
She found the office quickly, swiping her stolen badge again. The door clicked open.
Inside, the room was dark, illuminated only by the glow of city lights through the floor-to-ceiling windows. She moved quickly to the desk, plugging in the USB drive and pulling up the encrypted files. The screen filled with lines of code and folders with cryptic names.
Come on, come on…
Her fingers flew over the keyboard, bypassing security walls one by one. She had always been good at this—breaking past digital locks, slipping into places she wasn’t supposed to be.
A progress bar appeared. Downloading: 42%…
She exhaled. Almost there.
Then—
The door handle turned.
Adelina’s breath hitched.
She yanked the USB drive out, pocketing it just as the door swung open.
A man stepped inside.
Not a guard. Not an office worker.
Alexander Cross.
Her stomach flipped.
“What the hell are you doing here?” she hissed.
He didn’t look surprised to see her. If anything, he looked… amused.
“I could ask you the same thing,” he said, closing the door behind him.
Adelina’s pulse was racing. “Are you following me?”
His lips curled into a smirk. “I told you—I know everything you do before you do it.”
She glared at him. “You need to leave. Now.”
Alexander stepped closer, his dark eyes scanning the desk. He wasn’t dressed in his usual suit—tonight, he was in all black, blending into the shadows like a ghost. A dangerous one.
“I’m guessing you found something interesting,” he murmured, glancing at the blank computer screen.
Adelina stayed silent.
A moment of tension stretched between them. She could hear her own heartbeat, the faint hum of the city outside.
Then, suddenly—
An alarm blared through the building.
Adelina’s stomach dropped.
Alexander sighed. “Well. That complicates things.”
She spun toward the door. “I need to get out of here.”
“Agreed.”
Without warning, Alexander grabbed her wrist and pulled her toward the hallway. The cool strength of his grip sent a jolt through her, but she didn’t have time to protest.
Guards were already storming the floor, shouting orders into their radios.
“Follow my lead,” Alexander murmured, and before she could argue, he was dragging her toward the emergency stairwell.
They slipped inside just as a group of guards rushed past. Adelina’s breath came in sharp gasps.
“What the hell is going on?” she whispered.
Alexander smirked, still holding her wrist. “Let’s just say you’re not the only one interested in Project Revenant.”
Her stomach tightened.
What had she just gotten herself into?
And why, despite everything, did part of her trust the devil at her side?
- Writer
