Compromised

"We need to get out of here!" Calyx shouted, gripping my arm as we crawled toward the back of the restaurant. Jillian followed closely behind, her breaths ragged with panic.

But we stopped abruptly when gunshots rang out, sharp and deafening. Jillian let out a blood-curdling scream, her body going rigid. I turned to see her frozen in front of a man who had just been shot in the head. Blood pooled beneath him, his lifeless eyes still open. Jillian was trembling violently, her entire body locked in shock.

I cursed under my breath before grabbing her arm and slapping her across the face.

She gasped, clutching her cheek as tears welled in her eyes. "Why the fuck did you slap me?!"

"Because I need you to move!" I snapped. "Now, MOVE!" I shoved her toward Calyx, forcing her to snap out of it.

Calyx turned to me, his expression torn between urgency and frustration. "What the hell are you doing?! You could—"

Before he could finish, another explosion rocked the building, the force of it nearly knocking us off balance. The ceiling groaned under the impact, and I could hear the sickening sound of it starting to collapse. Debris rained down around us—chunks of concrete, shattered glass, and flaming wood—but there was no time to stop, no time to think.

Adrenaline surged through my veins, an old and familiar rush, something I hadn't felt in years. The instinct to survive, to push forward no matter what, took over. It reminded me of the missions, the danger I used to face alongside my friends. But this time, I wasn't armed. I wasn't prepared. And for the first time, I felt powerless.

Still, my body knew what to do. We kept crawling, faster, desperate. And somehow, we made it.

The moment we stumbled out of the restaurant, another explosion erupted behind us. The blast sent heat scorching against my back, and I gasped for air, watching in disbelief as the place we had just escaped was consumed in flames.

We had made it out. Barely.

And for the first time in years, I realized—I wasn't invincible.

"Are you okay?" Calyx's voice was rough with concern as he gripped my arms, his intense gaze searching my face. The worry in his eyes was unmistakable, almost suffocating.

I forced a weak smile and nodded. "Where's Jillian?"

Pathetic. That's what I was. I should have let Jillian fend for herself—God knows she made my life miserable. But here I was, worrying about her anyway.

"I'm still fucking alive, bitch!"

A breathy laugh escaped me at her response. She was leaning against a car, looking like an absolute disaster. But then again, so were we. The only difference was her skimpy dress had been torn to shreds, leaving her barely covered.

Before I could say anything else, Calyx suddenly pulled me into his arms. The embrace caught me completely off guard, stealing the air from my lungs. For a moment, I froze, feeling the warmth of his body, the familiarity of him.

And then I saw her.

Jillian stood a few feet away, her expression faltering before she quickly averted her gaze. For the first time, she looked fragile—like she was breaking in slow motion.

Something inside me twisted painfully.

I pushed Calyx away, my hands trembling. My chest felt tight, heavy with the weight of what I had to say.

I had sworn to stay by his side, even when it hurt. Even when it shattered me. But tonight, something inside me shifted. This marriage—this illusion of love—was breaking us both. It was making me weak, vulnerable in ways I never wanted to be.

If he was finally starting to love me, it didn't matter anymore.

I love him too much to keep holding on. Because I know now—love alone isn't enough to make this marriage work.

"Nine, tell me you're still alive." Uno's voice crackled in my ear through the earpiece.

I let out a shaky breath, relief washing over me. But as my eyes landed on Calyx, that fleeting sense of calm vanished. I knew I would regret this—I might even break myself in the process—but if staying meant destroying us both, then I had to do this.

He wouldn't agree. But I'd make sure it happened.

"Let's get a divorce, Calyx." The words left my lips like a final breath.

"Oh, fucking shit!" Uno cursed before the line went dead.

Calyx froze, his expression shifting from shock to something raw and unreadable. He took a step toward me, his voice laced with confusion. "What? Why?"

This wasn't the right time or place to end a marriage. But it was the only moment I had the strength to let him go. If I didn't do it now, I might never find the courage again.

"You can't… No. I won't agree to it."

I exhaled sharply, forcing myself to stay firm. "It doesn't matter. I'm doing it."

I turned away, each step feeling like I was walking through fire. But before I could get far, his hand shot out, gripping my arm, desperate.

I didn't meet his gaze. Instead, I wrenched free from his grasp, my voice steady despite the storm inside me.

"I'm breaking my own vow, Calyx. And you can't stop me anymore."

-

The tragedy at the restaurant last week became the biggest headline in the country. A massacre—nearly two dozen lives lost, and yet the perpetrators vanished without a trace. The media called it an act of terrorism, but I knew better.

While the rest of the world speculated, Kaiser, Uno, Lucien, and I worked relentlessly to uncover the truth. The deeper we dug, the clearer it became that this wasn't random. Someone had orchestrated it. Someone with a purpose.

And amid the chaos, I was also finalizing my divorce.

Calyx never wanted to let go, but in the end, Kaiser made him sign the papers. I hadn't seen him since that night, and I chose to keep it that way. It was better for both of us.

Especially now that I was starting to piece things together.

There was something bigger at play, something lurking beneath the surface. And it all led back to one question—why were there so many hidden CCTV cameras in our house?

"What did you find?" Uno asked the moment Kaiser stepped into the room.

I turned to Kaiser, who was glued to his computer, his fingers moving swiftly over the keyboard. Curious, I stepped closer, watching as multiple files opened one after another, each packed with information—classified reports, encrypted messages, fragments of something bigger. But nothing stood out. Not yet.

Then, a small folder in the corner of the screen caught my eye.

"Wait." I reached over, taking the mouse from Kaiser before he could move past it.

I quickly closed the clutter of open windows and clicked on the folder labeled "Lockhorst."

The screen refreshed, revealing a single document inside.

Kaiser cursed under his breath as the file's name burned into view. My chest tightened.

Because there it was—my full name, including my mother's maiden name, and my code name.

Severa Gabrielle "Nine" Graham-Trexler.

Someone had been keeping tabs on me.

We tried to open the document, but it was encrypted. Kaiser worked his magic, fingers flying over the keyboard, hacking through layers of security—but nothing worked. Frustrated, he called my brothers, bringing them into the loop. They tried everything, yet the file remained locked, impenetrable.

The tension in the room was thick. Panic simmered beneath the surface because if someone out there knew my real name—including my code name—then it meant one thing.

We were compromised.

I was compromised.

The others didn't know yet, and we decided to keep it that way. No need to stir chaos when they had lives outside of this—outside of the secrecy we were entangled in. They didn't need to worry. And I couldn't afford to let them think I couldn't fix this.

Except… I had no idea how to fix this.

"I'm sure Kaiser isn't the 'Lockhorst' this file is referring to," Uno muttered from the couch, a beer can clutched in his hand. His tone was casual, but his eyes weren't. They were sharp, calculating. "Because if he was, your name wouldn't be the only thing in that file, Nine."

Kaiser stood beside his workstation, arms crossed, his jaw tight. I remained in the center of the room, caught between unease and the sick feeling clawing at my stomach.

"I'll talk to Calyx," Kaiser finally suggested.

I shook my head immediately. "No. I have to talk to him." I bit the tip of my fingernail, my hands unsteady. The conclusion was already forming in my mind, creeping in like a slow-moving shadow. There was only one reason why a heavily encrypted file existed under my name.

And I was starting to get scared.

Uno stood and closed the distance between us, resting a firm hand on my shoulder. "Are you sure you can handle that? Your divorce is almost finalized."

I swallowed hard, then nodded. This wasn't about our marriage anymore.

I met both their gazes, steeling myself. "But I need to talk to him in secret. And I need both of your help."

Talking to Calyx was easy.

Talking to him about this?

That was another battle entirely.

And I had to make sure no one else was listening.