CHAPTER 15 — FIRE IN THE HEART
1222 Words
The city lights blurred beneath the storm clouds as Alex and Naomi rode through Iron Crest’s industrial district on Jason’s old motorcycle. The engine growled like a wounded beast, the wind slashing against them as they sped toward the abandoned shipyard Morales used as a covert stronghold.
Alex drove like a man possessed.
Jason’s blood was still warm on his hands.
Naomi clung to his back, feeling the taut muscles of his shoulders locked with fury, the tremor of grief he tried so hard to hide. She pressed her forehead lightly to his spine, silently promising she was with him. Not as someone he needed to protect but as someone who would stand with him even in the darkest fire.
At the edge of the shipyard, Alex slowed, stopping behind a stack of rusted cargo crates. He killed the engine and the world fell into an eerie silence broken only by distant thunder.
Naomi slid off the bike. “Alex… we need a plan.”
He took a long breath, staring out at the maze of containers, night patrol units, and armed guards. “We get in, find Morales, leak the data, and finish this before it becomes a full-scale war.”
Naomi touched his arm gently. “And after?”
Alex hesitated. “After… we figure out how to live with what’s left.”
She stepped closer. “You don’t have to carry everything alone.”
He looked at her really and something inside him cracked. He pulled her into a tight embrace, burying his face in her hair, letting a moment of human warmth soften the steel in his chest.
Naomi’s heart raced. She’d seen him fight, bleed, lose, and rise again. But seeing him vulnerable… seeing him finally lean on her… that was a different kind of battle entirely.
They parted only when a patrol truck rolled past.
Alex refocused. “Time to move.”
They slipped into the shipyard, moving like shadows among shadows.
Inside the Beast
Morales’ shipyard was a labyrinthcranes towering overhead, shipping containers stacked like walls, lights swinging in the wind, and mercenaries pacing with assault rifles. Every breath felt threaded with danger.
Alex and Naomi moved silently, Alex neutralizing two guards with swift, precise blows. Naomi handled another with a shock baton she’d stolen earlier, surprising Alex with her speed and control.
He raised a brow. “Where’d you learn that?”
“Internet,” she whispered.
Alex almost smiled. “Remind me never to underestimate you.”
They continued deeper until they reached an elevated control tower overlooking the yard. Inside, computers hummed with activity, guarded by a single merc. Naomi distracted him by knocking on the glass then Alex slipped behind and subdued him in seconds.
Inside, Alex plugged Jason’s flash drive into the system.
Lines of encrypted data scrolled across the screenshipments, transactions, kill orders, every dirty secret Morales had built his empire on.
“This is it,” Naomi whispered. “This will cripple him.”
Alex’s jaw tightened. “Jason didn’t die for nothing.”
But before the upload could complete, an alarm blared.
Red lights. Sirens. Shouts.
Alex’s stomach dropped. “They found the guard outside.”
Naomi grabbed the flash drive. “The upload is halfway done”
“We don’t have time,” Alex said. “We move. Now.”
They bolted from the control tower as armored guards swarmed the area. Bullets sprayed the railing behind them, sparks flying. Alex grabbed Naomi’s hand and they dove behind crates, rolling to safety.
Heart pounding, Naomi looked at him. “What now?”
Alex wiped blood from his lip and narrowed his eyes. “Now… we face Morales.”
The Face of the Serpent
They pushed deeper into the yard until they reached a massive warehouse built like a fortress. Two huge steel doors stood open, revealing armed guards inside.
Naomi squeezed Alex’s hand. “Are we ready?”
Alex kissed her forehead softlyquick, but filled with intensity. “With you? Always.”
Naomi felt heat rush through her, but there was no time to dwell on it.
They stormed the warehouse.
Alex moved like lightningdodging, striking, disarming. His fists were fire, his kicks thunder. He fought as if Jason’s spirit was guiding every blow.
Naomi stayed close behind, using every tactic Alex had taught her, catching blind spots, disorienting attackers, turning the fight into a synchronized dance of survival and fury.
Five guards fell.
Then eight.
Then twelve.
But Morales’ elite were different.
Black tactical armor.
Visors.
Silenced rifles.
Efficient.
Deadly.
Alex pushed Naomi behind a pillar as bullets tore through the air. “Stay low!”
She grabbed his arm. “Be careful.”
He gave her a half-smile. “You too.”
Then he charged.
The elites moved with precision, but Alex’s rage fueled him. He closed the distance, slamming one into a crate, twisting another into a chokehold, disarming a third with a brutal knee to the jaw.
The last guard raised his weapon
Naomi leaped forward, swinging a steel rod into his helmet, knocking him unconscious.
Alex stared at her, impressed. “You really are full of surprises.”
She smirked. “And you’re welcome.”
The Devil Appears
The warehouse doors slammed shut behind them with an ear-splitting clang.
A slow clap echoed from the shadows.
Morales stepped outsharp suit, cold eyes, a snake’s grin. Surrounded by more guards stationed above on the balcony.
“Alexander Cruz,” Morales said smoothly. “Always the unpredictable one.”
Alex stepped forward. “You killed my brother.”
Morales smirked, unfazed. “Jason chose his side. And he paid for his mistake.”
Alex’s fists clenched. “I’m going to end you.”
“No,” Morales replied casually, raising a remote detonator. “I’m going to end both of you.”
Explosive charges blinked across the warehouse walls.
Naomi’s breath caught. “Alex”
“Move!” he yelled.
Alex grabbed her as he dove behind a metal container, an explosion ripping through the floor where they’d stood seconds before. Fire roared. Metal shrieked. Smoke swallowed the room.
Morales’ laughter echoed above the chaos.
Alex shielded Naomi with his body as another blast shook the warehouse. She clung to him, eyes wide with terror.
“Alex… we’re trapped.”
“No,” he said fiercely, holding her face between his hands. “As long as I’m breathing, you are never trapped.”
She believed him.
She always did.
The Escape
Amid the smoke, Alex found a broken maintenance hatch. “There!”
They crawled through as explosions rippled behind them. The heat singed their backs, but they pushed through until they fell out onto a service dock behind the warehouse.
Naomi coughed violently. Alex pulled her close, brushing soot from her cheeks.
“You okay?” he whispered.
She nodded, eyes shining. “Because of you.”
Thunder cracked above them.
Rain began to fall cold, heavy, cleansing.
Alex stared back at the burning warehouse, jaw tightening.
“This isn’t over,” he murmured. “Morales wants a war?”
Naomi squeezed his hand. “Then we give him one.”
Alex kissed her rough, desperate, full of fire and fear and love. The rain soaked them, flames reflected in their eyes.
Tonight, everything changed.
And the final strike had only begun.
- Writer
