SILENT VOWS

That night, at Yeager's house, Celestine was staring at her phone screen, tracking Yeager's movements through an app she had just discovered.

Her heart was pounding in her chest, sensing that something was off, but she couldn't hold back her curiosity. With swift steps, she left the house and began following the red dot on her phone.

Celestine walked cautiously, treading through the dark streets, trying to sneak by undetected. Her mind was full of questions—what was really going on? Why was Yeager so mysterious? She felt like something was wrong, and tonight, she was determined to find out what it was.

After walking for some time, Celestine arrived at a large building that looked very suspicious. The building seemed to be a major headquarters, heavily guarded, and surrounded by an air of mystery. Celestine froze for a moment, sensing a growing tension. "What is this?" she muttered quietly, feeling a chill creep up her spine.

Cautiously, Celestine decided to get closer to the building. She saw several people dressed in black, standing guard at the entrance. Some of them seemed to be whispering, adding to the ominous atmosphere.

Unbeknownst to her, one of the guards spotted her. "Hey, you!" the guard shouted, quickly grabbing Celestine.

Celestine struggled, but there were too many people in the way. "No... I have to get out!" she thought, trying desperately to break free. But just as she was about to make a run for it, the main door to the building opened, and Yeager stepped out.

"Celestine?" Yeager's voice was cold, but there was an underlying note of concern hidden in it.

Celestine glared at Yeager, her confusion mixed with fear. "What's going on here, Yeager? What are you hiding?" she asked, her voice trembling.

Without answering, Yeager stepped forward, and before Celestine could react, he grabbed her by the waist, holding her tightly so she couldn't move. Celestine thrashed, trying to escape, but Yeager's grip was too strong.

"Hey, hey, look at me," Yeager said, his voice low and commanding. "You're not going anywhere. Not from me."

Celestine fell silent for a moment, her eyes desperately searching for a way out. But she also felt the tension in the air—something bigger than her, something she couldn't comprehend.

"You still don't understand, do you?" Yeager asked, his voice softer now, but still warning. "This is bigger than you think. I'll protect you, Celestine."

Celestine could only stare at him, confused and scared. There was something dark within Yeager—something she couldn't fully understand, but she couldn't ignore the reality that she had been dragged far into this dangerous world.

At Yeager's house, the atmosphere was tense and quiet. Celestine sat on the couch, still pale and shaken after what she saw at the mysterious building. Her hands trembled, and she kept glancing at the door as if afraid someone might come after her again.

Yeager quietly closed the door and sat beside her. He didn't say anything at first, just watched his wife with a concerned gaze.

"Are you still scared?" he finally asked gently.

Celestine turned to him, her eyes red. "You hid everything from me… I feel like an idiot."

Yeager took a deep breath, about to respond, but suddenly, a voice came from the kitchen.

"Uhh, sorry, there are only two fried chicken left, right? I'm taking one," said Jamie, walking in with a plate full of food.

Both Celestine and Yeager turned to look. Jamie stood there casually, munching like it was just another day.

"Why so tense? You guys look like a soap opera scene," he added with a smirk.

Celestine frowned. "What are you doing here?"

"Crashing dinner," Jamie replied casually. "But seriously, the food here is amazing. I just found out my brother-in-law isn't just a CEO… but also that kind of guy." He made a mock gun gesture with his fingers.

Yeager raised an eyebrow.

"Don't you have homework or something?"

"Already done. Chill. I've been helping cover for you too, remember?" Jamie said proudly.

Celestine looked back and forth between the two.

"Wait… you knew? Since when have you two been working together?"

Jamie shrugged.

"Since you guys got married. But don't worry, I'm just the 'junior intel'. I don't do any of the shooting stuff."

Yeager smiled a little, and Celestine slowly began to relax. Jamie's random antics and goofy nature somehow made the heavy mood easier to bear. Although her mind was still spinning with questions, Celestine finally let out a small sigh.

"Okay, one last question," Celestine said, narrowing her eyes at Jamie.

"Were you the one who put a tracker on my phone?"

Jamie laughed and pretended to cough.

"Ahem… that wasn't me. That was… automatic system stuff."

Celestine threw a pillow at him, and for the first time that night, they all laughed together.

Jamie was still chewing on a piece of fried chicken, glancing around the luxurious kitchen with a curious gaze. Leaning on the high counter stool, he looked over at Yeager and said with a mouth half-full,

"Hey, bro… is there any machine or gadget I can mess around with in this fancy house? I'm bored out of my mind just eating."

Yeager, lounging on the sofa with his arms crossed, glanced at him briefly and responded with that typical unreadable smile—somewhere between amused and avoiding the question.

Celestine, sitting beside Yeager, raised an eyebrow and chimed in,

"This house just got renovated, Jamie. Everything's still shiny and new. What are you gonna fix? The AC remote?"

Jamie squinted playfully.

"Well, you never know. At least give me one room to turn into my mini lab or something. Better than me messing with expensive stuff and getting blamed later."

Yeager finally spoke, his tone calm but with a faint smirk at the edge of his lips,

"Check the garage. There's an old drone and some field comms gear. If you can get them running again, they're all yours."

Jamie's eyes lit up.

"DEAL!" he exclaimed.

"I swear, as an amateur engineer, I will revive the future tech lying in that garage!"

Celestine sighed, rubbing her temples.

"Please just don't burn the house down, Ja."

Jamie grinned.

"Relax. If it catches fire… I'm the first one out."

Laughter filled the room, and although things had been tense before, Jamie once again managed to lighten the mood in his own way.