VENOM

7 THE FIRST LIE

The city was still sleeping when C.Y. made his decision.

He stood beside the window of the abandoned apartment, watching the first light of morning slowly push through the darkness.

Behind him, Maya was asleep on the couch.

For the first time since they escaped the Directorate, neither of them was being hunted.

At least, not visibly.

C.Y. knew better.

The Directorate had satellites.

Surveillance cameras.

Informants.

Agents in places nobody would expect.

Running wouldn't be enough.

They needed information.

They needed somewhere safe.

Most importantly, they needed to find his family.

C.Y. turned away from the window.

He looked at Maya.

She was sleeping with one hand resting near the medical bag she'd refused to put down.

C.Y. smiled faintly.

Then his expression hardened.

He walked toward the small table in the corner.

On it were several things they'd taken during their escape.

Two communication devices.

A Directorate access card.

A damaged tablet.

A handgun.

And the data drive Marcus Hale had given him.

C.Y. picked up the drive.

PROJECT VENOM.

He stared at the words.

"Let's see what you're hiding."

He inserted it into the damaged tablet.

The screen flickered.

Nothing.

He tried again.

A password appeared.

AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY.

C.Y. sighed.

"Of course."

Maya's voice came from behind him.

"Try the date."

He turned.

She was awake.

"Which date?"

"The day you were recruited."

C.Y. frowned.

"Why?"

"Because everything about this project seems connected to you."

C.Y. looked at the screen.

He entered the date.

The screen remained locked.

"Didn't work."

Maya walked closer.

"Try your birth date."

C.Y. entered it.

Nothing.

"Your sister's?"

He shook his head.

"No."

"Your mother's?"

"No."

Maya studied the screen.

"Then what?"

C.Y. stared at the phrase.

AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY.

Then he remembered something Mr. Confidence had said.

Names are interesting things.

C.Y. entered:

CONFIDENCE

The screen unlocked.

Both of them froze.

Maya stared.

"You've got to be kidding."

C.Y. shook his head.

"I hate that man."

The folder opened.

Hundreds of encrypted files appeared.

Maya sat beside him.

"Don't open everything."

"Why?"

"Because if the Directorate planted a tracker..."

C.Y. stopped.

"You're right."

He disconnected the tablet from every network.

Then he opened the first file.

A document appeared.

PROJECT VENOM — ORIGIN

C.Y. began reading.

His expression slowly changed.

Maya noticed.

"What?"

C.Y. didn't answer.

She looked at the screen.

The first paragraph was short.

Project Venom was established twenty-one years ago following the discovery of a rare neurological phenomenon observed in individuals with exceptional combat adaptability.

Maya frowned.

"Twenty-one years?"

C.Y. nodded.

"Before I was born."

She continued reading.

The project wasn't originally about assassins.

It had begun as a research program.

Scientists had studied soldiers, athletes, fighters, and criminals who displayed unusually fast reactions under extreme stress.

Most subjects performed better when threatened.

But a tiny percentage became dramatically more capable.

Their brains processed movement faster.

Their bodies reacted before conscious thought.

Their ability to learn physical patterns increased under pressure.

The Directorate called them adaptive subjects.

C.Y. read the next section.

Only nineteen confirmed subjects demonstrated sustained adaptation.

Maya whispered:

"Nineteen."

C.Y. nodded.

"The people Marcus mentioned."

The document continued.

All nineteen subjects were eventually classified as failures.

C.Y. scrolled.

There were no explanations.

No names.

Just numbers.

Subject 01 — deceased.

Subject 02 — deceased.

Subject 03 — terminated.

Subject 04 — missing.

C.Y. stopped.

"Terminated."

Maya looked at him.

"They killed them."

"Probably."

"Then why are you Subject Twenty?"

C.Y. didn't answer.

He opened another file.

SUBJECT 20 — CYRIL VICTOR

The document contained hundreds of pages.

C.Y. scrolled through them.

His childhood.

His school.

His physical development.

His fights.

His injuries.

His behavior.

Then something caught his attention.

Subject demonstrates abnormal response to family-related threats.

C.Y. stared at the sentence.

Maya's expression hardened.

"They knew."

"Yeah."

"They knew exactly how to manipulate you."

C.Y. closed the file.

His fists tightened.

Maya placed her hand on his arm.

"Don't."

"I'm fine."

"You're not."

C.Y. looked at her.

She didn't move her hand.

"You're allowed to be angry."

He looked away.

"I don't want to become them."

Maya's voice softened.

"You won't."

"How do you know?"

"Because you still care."

C.Y. looked at her.

She smiled.

"That's what separates you from them."

For a moment, neither spoke.

Then C.Y. opened another file.

This one was different.

SUBJECT 20 — FAMILY ASSESSMENT

C.Y.'s expression immediately changed.

He opened it.

Photographs appeared.

His mother.

His sister.

Their home.

Their school.

Their medical appointments.

Their friends.

Then one photograph appeared that C.Y. had never seen.

His mother talking to a man outside a hospital.

C.Y. zoomed in.

The man was wearing a Directorate badge.

Maya leaned closer.

"Who is that?"

"I don't know."

C.Y. opened the metadata.

The photograph had been taken seven years ago.

He stared at the date.

He had been thirteen.

"What were they doing with my mother?"

Maya shook her head.

"We need to find out."

C.Y. opened another file.

This one contained an interview.

A video appeared.

The footage was old.

A young woman sat in a white room.

She looked exhausted.

A number was displayed beneath her.

SUBJECT 07

A voice from behind the camera asked:

"Do you understand why you're here?"

The woman nodded.

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because you think I'm special."

"Are you?"

The woman looked directly at the camera.

"No."

The interviewer laughed.

"That's not what the tests say."

The woman leaned forward.

"You're making a mistake."

"What mistake?"

"You think the ability is the weapon."

She paused.

"The person is."

The video ended.

C.Y. stared at the screen.

Maya whispered:

"She knew."

C.Y. nodded.

He opened the file information.

Subject 07 — deceased.

He moved to another.

Subject 11.

Another.

Subject 14.

Subject 16.

Every recording ended the same way.

Every subject had eventually died, disappeared, or been classified as unstable.

Then they reached Subject 19.

The screen remained black.

No interview.

No photograph.

Only one sentence.

SUBJECT 19 ESCAPED.

C.Y. sat upright.

Maya looked at him.

"Escaped?"

"Yeah."

"Where?"

C.Y. opened the file.

The information was heavily encrypted.

He couldn't access it.

Then another line appeared.

LAST KNOWN LOCATION: CANADA.

C.Y. frowned.

"Why Canada?"

Maya looked at the screen.

"I don't know."

C.Y. stared at the information.

"Maybe Subject 19 is still alive."

"Maybe."

He closed the file.

"We need to find them."

Maya nodded.

"But first..."

C.Y. looked at her.

"Your family."

He nodded.

---

Three hours later, they were driving across the city.

C.Y. had changed vehicles twice.

Maya had bought new clothes.

They looked like ordinary civilians.

That was the point.

The Directorate wouldn't expect them to move through crowded areas.

C.Y. drove silently.

Maya sat beside him.

She looked at the tablet.

"I found something."

"What?"

"The photograph of your mother."

C.Y. glanced at her.

"What about it?"

"The man beside her."

She turned the screen.

"I ran his face through the database."

C.Y. looked at the image.

"Who is he?"

Maya hesitated.

"His name is Samuel Cross."

"Agent?"

"Former agent."

"Former?"

"He disappeared eight years ago."

C.Y. frowned.

"Why?"

"Classified."

"Everything is classified with these people."

Maya continued.

"But there's something else."

She showed him another document.

Samuel Cross had been assigned to Project Venom.

C.Y.'s hands tightened around the steering wheel.

"How long?"

"Five years."

"So he was involved with me."

"Maybe."

C.Y. stared ahead.

"Then we find him."

Maya nodded.

"Agreed."

---

Their search led them to an old apartment building.

According to the database, Samuel Cross had once lived there.

C.Y. parked several streets away.

They approached on foot.

The building looked abandoned.

Windows were broken.

The entrance was covered with dust.

Maya looked around.

"Feels safe."

C.Y. smiled.

"That's because it isn't."

They entered.

The stairwell was dark.

C.Y. moved first.

Maya followed.

Third floor.

Apartment 3B.

The door was locked.

C.Y. examined it.

"Old lock."

"Can you open it?"

He smiled.

"You underestimate me."

Thirty seconds later, the door opened.

Maya raised an eyebrow.

"Show-off."

"Thank you."

They entered.

The apartment was empty.

Dust covered everything.

C.Y. searched the living room.

Nothing.

Maya checked the bedroom.

Nothing.

Then she called out.

"C.Y."

He entered.

She pointed toward the wall.

A small symbol had been scratched into the paint.

A circle.

With a line through it.

C.Y. recognized it.

"The Directorate."

Maya shook her head.

"No."

She pointed underneath it.

There were three letters.

V-19

C.Y. stared.

"Subject 19."

Before they could investigate further, a sound came from the hallway.

Footsteps.

C.Y. immediately pulled Maya behind the wall.

The apartment door opened.

Two men entered.

Directorate agents.

One spoke quietly.

"The room is empty."

The second looked around.

"Search it."

C.Y. whispered:

"They followed us."

Maya nodded.

"How?"

"I don't know."

The agents moved closer.

C.Y. looked around.

One exit.

Two enemies.

He leaned toward Maya.

"Stay here."

She grabbed his arm.

"No."

"Maya."

"I'm coming."

C.Y. smiled.

"Fine."

The first agent entered the room.

C.Y. stepped out.

The man barely had time to react.

C.Y. disarmed him.

Maya moved behind the second.

The fight lasted seconds.

Both agents were down.

C.Y. searched them.

He found a communication device.

He activated it.

A voice came through.

"Status?"

C.Y. stayed silent.

The voice repeated.

"Report."

C.Y. looked at Maya.

Then pressed the button.

"Tell Mr. Confidence..."

He paused.

"...I'm coming."

He crushed the device.

Maya stared at him.

"You wanted him to hear that?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

C.Y. looked toward the scratched symbol.

"Because I want him to know I'm not running anymore."

---

That night, they returned to the apartment.

C.Y. couldn't stop thinking about the symbol.

V-19.

Subject 19.

Samuel Cross.

His mother.

Everything seemed connected.

Maya sat beside him.

"You need sleep."

"I'll sleep when we find them."

"C.Y."

He looked at her.

"You can't keep doing this."

"I have to."

"You don't."

He looked away.

Maya gently touched his hand.

"Let me help you."

C.Y. looked back.

"You already are."

She smiled.

"Then stop trying to carry everything alone."

C.Y. nodded.

He didn't say anything else.

But he moved his hand slightly.

Their fingers intertwined.

Neither pulled away.

For a while, they simply sat there.

No Directorate.

No missions.

No Project Venom.

Just two people trying to survive.

Then C.Y.'s phone vibrated.

Unknown number.

He answered.

A distorted voice spoke.

"You're looking for Samuel Cross."

C.Y. stood immediately.

"Who are you?"

"Someone who knows the truth."

"Where is he?"

"Not so fast."

"What do you want?"

"Nothing."

"Then why call?"

"To warn you."

"About what?"

The voice became quieter.

"You're searching for the wrong man."

C.Y. frowned.

"What does that mean?"

"Samuel Cross isn't hiding from you."

A pause.

"He's hiding from them."

C.Y.'s expression changed.

"Where is he?"

The caller whispered:

"Find the place where Project Venom began."

The call ended.

C.Y. stared at the phone.

Maya stood.

"Who was it?"

"I don't know."

"What did they say?"

C.Y. looked at her.

"We've been searching in the wrong direction."

Maya waited.

C.Y. picked up the tablet.

He opened the Project Venom files again.

He searched through the oldest records.

Twenty-one years ago.

The first facility.

The first experiments.

The beginning.

Then he found a location.

C.Y. stared at the screen.

Maya stepped closer.

"Where?"

C.Y. whispered:

"An old research facility."

"Where?"

He looked at her.

"Outside the city."

Maya studied the map.

"That's abandoned."

"According to the government."

She looked at him.

"And according to us?"

C.Y. closed the tablet.

"We're going."

---

Deep beneath the Directorate, Mr. Confidence stood before a massive screen.

A map showed C.Y.'s location.

An agent stood beside him.

"They found the apartment."

"I know."

"They've accessed Project Venom."

"I expected that."

"They're heading toward the original facility."

Mr. Confidence smiled.

"Good."

The agent looked confused.

"You wanted them to find it?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

Mr. Confidence turned toward him.

"Because there are some truths that become useful only when discovered at the right time."

The agent hesitated.

"And Subject 19?"

Mr. Confidence's smile disappeared.

"Don't mention that name."

"Sir?"

Mr. Confidence looked at the screen.

For the first time, there was something close to fear in his eyes.

"Subject 19 was never supposed to survive."

He turned away.

"Find them before C.Y. does."

---

Miles away, C.Y. sat in the driver's seat.

Maya sat beside him.

The city lights disappeared behind them.

Ahead was darkness.

Neither knew what waited at the original Project Venom facility.

Neither knew why Samuel Cross had disappeared.

Neither knew what had happened to Subject 19.

But C.Y. knew one thing.

The truth was getting closer.

And somewhere in the darkness ahead...

someone was waiting for him.

Not an agent.

Not an assassin.

Not Mr. Confidence.

Something from the beginning of Project Venom.

Something the Directorate had spent years trying to bury.

And C.Y. was about to uncover it.