Chapter 84: A Future Unknown

The morning air was crisp, carrying the scent of rain-soaked earth and the lingering traces of gunpowder from a war that had finally come to an end. Isabella stood outside the safe house, the gravel crunching beneath her boots as she watched the horizon.

She was free. The thought should have been a relief, but instead, it left a strange emptiness in its wake.

What now?

She had spent years chasing vengeance, sacrificing everything to see Langston fall. But now that it was done, there was no next mission. No next battle.

Just the quiet hum of a world that had moved on without her.

The sound of a car approaching pulled her from her thoughts. She turned just as Damian stepped out of a sleek black sedan, his usual cocky smirk replaced with something more serious.

"You're hard to track down," he said, walking toward her.

Isabella crossed her arms. "I wasn't trying to be found."

Damian stopped a few feet away, tilting his head. "That's never stopped me before."

She sighed, already sensing where this was going. "Just say it, Damian."

He exhaled, shoving his hands into his pockets. "The world is changing, Isabella. Langston may be gone, but that doesn't mean the war is over. There are power vacuums, people looking to claim the pieces he left behind."

She said nothing, waiting.

"You have a choice," he continued. "You can disappear, start over, pretend none of this ever happened. Or you can help shape what comes next."

Isabella let out a dry laugh. "You're recruiting me."

Damian shrugged. "I'm giving you an option."

She turned back to the view, her mind racing. Did she want this? Could she walk away from everything and carve out a quiet life somewhere? Or was this who she was someone who would always fight?

Before she could answer, she felt Alexander's presence behind her.

She didn't turn, but she felt the heat of his gaze, the way he studied her like he already knew the storm raging inside her.

"Do you want to do this?" His voice was calm, steady. No judgment. Just understanding.

Isabella exhaled. "I don't know."

Alexander nodded, stepping beside her. "Then we figure it out."

She looked at him then, at the man who had once been her enemy, who had become something she never expected. A partner. Maybe something more.

For the first time in years, she had a choice.

And whatever she decided she wouldn't be making it alone.