⚫Chapter 3: A Ghost from the Past
🕯️ Verdale City – Abandoned Warehouse, 2:13 AM
The rain was heavier now—less a drizzle, more like the sky itself was trying to drown the city. Water dripped through cracks in the rusted ceiling, splashing onto the concrete floor in rhythmic beats. It was the sound of a ticking clock... counting down to something inevitable.
Liana stood in the middle of the warehouse, her silhouette barely visible in the dim glow of a flickering light bulb. Her black gloves tightened around the grip of her pistol. Her heartbeat was steady. Her breathing... calculated.
She wasn't here by accident.
This was where the next name on her list always conducted his dirty dealings: Victor Hale. Arms dealer. Human trafficker. One of the men who'd signed her life away.
But tonight... the hunter became the prey.
Suddenly—
A whisper of movement.
She spun, weapon raised. Nothing. Just shadows... and the wind.
Then—
A voice. Calm. Familiar. Unbelievably familiar.
— "You never did learn to check your six... did you?"
Her blood froze.
No.
Impossible.
That voice was dead. Buried. Gone.
Slowly... painfully slowly... she turned.
Standing just a few feet behind her, half-hidden in shadow, was a man she once thought she knew better than anyone. A man she mourned. A man whose betrayal broke her more than the bullet ever did.
Daniel.
— "You..." Her voice cracked, equal parts fury and disbelief. "You should be dead."
A smirk tugged at the corner of his lips.
— "So should you. Yet... here we are."
Her grip tightened. Finger hovering over the trigger.
— "Give me one reason... one... why I shouldn't end this right now."
Daniel raised both hands, mock surrender. His eyes, however, gleamed with something darker.
— "Because I have information... something you'll want. Something... about him."
Her eyes narrowed.
— "Him...?"
Daniel nodded. His smile faded. For the first time in years... there was something else in his expression. Fear.
— "The man behind all of this. The man even I fear. The one who orchestrated everything—the contracts, the betrayals... your death."
Liana took a step forward, gun unwavering.
— "Don't play games with me."
Daniel's gaze hardened.
— "You think you've been playing chess, Liana. No. You've been a pawn in someone else's game... just like the rest of us."
— "Bullshit." Her voice was ice.
— "Is it?" He pulled a folder from inside his coat—thick, worn, water-stained. He tossed it toward her feet.
Carefully, still aiming the gun at him, she bent down and flipped it open.
Her breath caught.
Photos. Names. Bank accounts. Shipping logs. Contracts. All tied together by one symbol stamped on every page: A black circle with a line through it. Zero.
— "The Zero Syndicate..." she whispered.
Daniel nodded.
— "You thought this was about personal betrayal? About greed? No... Liana. This... was a cleansing. A purge ordered by someone far above me. Above Crawford. Above everyone."
She stood, gun trembling slightly.
— "Why tell me this now? After everything?"
Daniel's eyes darkened.
— "Because I'm next. And if they're coming for me... they're coming for you too. The storm you started? You were never the only one stirring it."
Footsteps. Several. From outside.
Both of them snapped to alert.
— "They're already here," Daniel hissed, drawing a pistol of his own.
From the shadows, men in tactical gear emerged—silent, disciplined, weapons raised. No logos. No insignias. Ghosts.
A red laser dot appeared on Daniel's chest. Another swept over Liana's shoulder.
Then... over a speaker—cold, robotic:
— "TARGETS ACQUIRED. EXECUTE."
Gunfire exploded.
---
⚡ The Dance of Death
Liana rolled behind a crate, bullets shredding the air where she stood seconds ago. Daniel dove the opposite direction, firing blind as the tactical team advanced.
Wood splintered. Sparks flew. The warehouse became a warzone.
— "This is your fault!" she snarled, squeezing off two rounds that dropped one attacker.
— "Glad to see you missed me!" Daniel yelled back, ducking as a grenade clinked nearby.
BOOM.
A shockwave sent crates flying, smoke filling the air.
Through the chaos, Liana moved like shadow and lightning. Her knife found one throat. Her pistol emptied into another's chest.
Daniel wasn't far behind—efficient, brutal. For a moment, the years of betrayal blurred, and it felt... familiar. Like the old days.
But this wasn't the past. This was survival.
More footsteps. Reinforcements.
— "We can't stay!" Daniel shouted, grabbing her by the arm. "This way—come on!"
— "Don't touch me!" she snapped, yanking free. But she followed.
They burst through a side door just as another explosion rocked the building. Sirens echoed in the distance. Police? No... Not police. This was cleaner. Deadlier. Someone wanted no witnesses.
---
🔥 An Uneasy Alliance
Out in the alley, gasping for breath, Liana shoved Daniel against the wall.
— "Talk. Fast. Why me? Why now?"
Daniel winced, wiping blood from his temple.
— "Because we're both screwed. The Zero Syndicate doesn't leave loose ends... and we? We're the biggest loose ends there are."
He pulled a USB drive from his pocket.
— "Everything you need. Names. Locations. Even... him."
Her hand trembled as she took it.
— "Why are you helping me?"
He looked at her... and for once, there was no smirk. No arrogance. Just cold truth.
— "Because, Liana... sometimes, the devil you know... is the only one who knows how to burn hell down."
A beat of silence.
Their eyes met.
Not forgiveness.
Not trust.
But necessity.
— "This doesn't mean I've forgiven you," she muttered.
Daniel gave a bitter chuckle.
— "Didn't ask you to."
Then—from the end of the alley—headlights. Engines. More shadows.
Daniel cursed.
— "We've got company."
Liana slid her pistol back into her holster, cracking her neck.
— "Then let's give them a welcome party they'll never forget."
---
✔️ End of Chapter Three
🩸 Next Chapter Preview:
As the hunt continues, an unexpected figure from Liana's past returns—someone she thought was long dead. But are they friend... or foe? Meanwhile, the first cracks appear inside the Zero Syndicate itself, as someone from the inside starts feeding Liana information. But why?