Chapter 227: Shadows in the Dark
The room plunged into total darkness.
For most people, that meant blindness. Panic. Disadvantage.
For Ochieng?
It meant opportunity.
---
A breath.
A shift of movement.
The distinct metallic click of a gun being cocked.
Then—
The first shot.
Ochieng had already moved before the bullet even left the chamber. He ducked low, rolling to the side as the shot barely grazed past where his head had been just seconds ago.
Another shot rang out. This one was closer.
His mind was already processing the battlefield.
Veyron had killed the lights. Why?
Who had fired first? Nadia? Dmitri? A hidden third party?
Where was Ezekiel?
And more importantly—
Where was Veyron?
---
Ochieng didn't wait for answers. He reacted.
He had spent too many years in places where the night wasn't an obstacle but a weapon.
He moved like a ghost.
Silent. Precise. Calculated.
A shadow passed by his right—someone shifting.
Ochieng struck.
His fist connected with a ribcage—hard. A gasp of pain.
He recognized the voice. Dmitri.
Not the enemy.
Before he could warn him, another figure lunged.
This one wasn't sloppy. They were fast.
Ochieng barely managed to evade the attack, feeling a sharp blade cut through the air near his cheek.
A knife.
Veyron.
---
Ochieng countered instantly. His elbow shot forward, aiming for Veyron's gut—
But it never connected.
Veyron had already moved.
He was playing in the dark too.
For the first time, Ochieng acknowledged a dangerous truth.
Veyron wasn't just confident. He was capable.
A rare opponent.
A predator like him.
---
Just as suddenly as the power had gone out—
The lights flickered back.
The room was an absolute mess.
Dmitri was clutching his ribs.
Nadia had her gun raised but was pointing at the wrong spot.
Ezekiel looked unfazed, but his eyes burned with silent calculation.
And Veyron?
He stood there, straightening his glasses, completely unharmed.
"You're quick," he admitted, looking at Ochieng. "I respect that."
Ochieng didn't reply.
He was already thinking ahead.
Veyron had tested him. That meant he wasn't done yet.
This game wasn't over.
It was just beginning.
---