Smoke still clung to the air like the memory of a war just fought. Jack stood in the lab’s wreckage, staring at the sealed corridor where Vincent had vanished. His fists clenched at his sides.
Emily sat quietly on a steel bench, wrists cuffed now, a medic checking a wound on her temple. William tapped through the stolen data on his tablet, muttering under his breath. Law enforcement moved with mechanical efficiency—bagging evidence, questioning mercenaries, securing the area.
Jack hadn’t said a word since Vincent disappeared.
Finally, William looked up. “You okay?”
Jack gave a bitter chuckle. “Define ‘okay.’”
“Alive, breathing, still mad at the world?”
“That last one especially.”
William nodded. “Then yeah. You're okay.”
Jack turned his attention to Emily. She flinched when their e
