RickAdams

A war-scarred military commander. A world-renowned doctor shrouded in mystery. Bound by secrets, hunted by enemies, and tied by a vow soaked in blood — together they must fight the forces that seek to tear them apart.
Love, power, and revenge converge in this spellbinding romance where nothing is as it seems.

Tactical Desires

Tokyo Rooftop, Japan | Damien's Moscow Estate, Russia

Rain poured from the heavens like liquid glass, sheeting off the steel canopy that crowned the eighty-seventh floor of the Shinsei Corporate Tower. Lysander Cole stood at the edge of the rooftop, wind whipping at his coat as he stared down the scope of a high-precision rifle.

Below, the lights of Tokyo flickered like stars scattered across the earth. His breath fogged against the scope, steady despite the chaos unfurling in his ear.

"Abort the mission, Lysander," Nora's voice crackled through his earpiece, panicked but composed. "They set you up. That informant was compromised."

Lysander didn't blink. "I have a clear shot on the Blackridge envoy. This could stall their Eastern operations."

"That envoy is bait," she insisted. "Archer's real play is on the move. And you're the distraction."

Before he could respond, the door to the rooftop exploded open.

Three masked operatives stormed out, weapons drawn.

Lysander ducked and rolled, firing once—clean shot, center mass. The second came at him with a blade, but he parried with the rifle and sent the attacker flying over the railing with a spin kick.

He turned to the third—but they were gone.

Instead, he found a message burned into the concrete with thermite ink:

"Say hello to your brother, Damien."

Moscow, Russia – Damien's Ancestral Estate

Inside the snow-covered fortress of grey stone and burning hearths, Damien sat across from a man who wore his face like a curse.

Anton Lancaster. His cousin. His rival. And long presumed dead in the aftermath of the Rio bank heist seven years ago.

"You're supposed to be buried in Brazil," Damien said, eyes narrowed.

Anton gave a slow smile, sipping from a crystal tumbler. "And you were supposed to be just a spoiled heir, Damien. Yet here we are."

"No, but you believe in legacy. And Archer is using that against you." Anton leaned forward. "He wants to rip Tavara apart, not just politically—but by decimating your bloodline."

"He's coming for your father. For your uncles. For our entire family tree."

"How do you know this?" Damien asked darkly.

"Because I was working with him," Anton admitted. "Until I realized he planned to make me the final scapegoat."

A silence hung in the room like a guillotine.

Damien stood. "You think I'll trust you again after what happened in Rio?"

"No," Anton said. "But you'll need me. Because the next name on Archer's list... is Amara."

Damien's heart slammed in his chest. "My sister?"

Somewhere in Tavara – Nora's Private Lab

Nora slammed the encrypted chip into the system, breathing heavily as the firewall cracked like an egg. Lines of data spilled across the screen.

"Archer's global map," she whispered. "Nodes, strikes, supply chains... and biological tags?"

Her fingers danced across the keyboard, and a name pulsed on the screen in red.

Elara M. Thorne – Subject: Resurrected Asset.

A video opened—her mother, restrained in an underground chamber, whispering:

"He's rewriting bloodlines. No one is who they seem."

Nora's scream echoed in the sterile room.

To be continued...

Chapter 40: Bloodlines Burn