I didn't move.
Even after he told me to go upstairs.
Even after the guards shifted nervously.
Even after the air turned thick with something violent and inevitable.
"Raven."
His voice this time….
lower.
Sharper.
"Go."
Something in his tone made my chest tighten.
Not just command.
Urgency.
I turned.
And ran.
The moment I reached the top of the stairs, everything exploded.
Gunshots.
Loud.
Deafening.
The sound ripped through the house like thunder, followed by shouting….men barking orders, glass shattering, something heavy crashing to the ground.
I froze for half a second.
Then…
Claire.
I ran toward the guest wing, my heart slamming against my ribs.
"Claire!" I pushed the door open.
She jumped up from the bed, eyes wide.
"What is happening?!"
"No time…..come on!"
Another round of gunshots echoed, closer this time.
Her face drained of color.
"Raven…"
"Move!"
I grabbed her hand and pulled her out into the hallway.
Guards were everywhere now.
Running.
Shouting.
Weapons drawn.
"Get them out of here!" one of them yelled.
Two men rushed toward us immediately.
"This way!"
We didn't argue.
We followed.
Down a back corridor.
Faster.
Turn after turn….
the house suddenly felt like a maze.
More gunshots.
Closer.
A scream echoed somewhere behind us.
Claire tightened her grip on my hand.
"Raven, I'm scared…"
"I know," I said, breathless. "Just don't stop."
We reached a side exit…
but before we could step out…
BOOM.
The door burst inward.
Men flooded in.
Armed.
Masked.
Everything slowed.
One of them pointed.
"There!"
My blood ran cold.
"They're the targets…don't let them leave!"
A gunshot rang out.
The guard beside us dropped instantly.
Claire screamed.
"MOVE!" the second guard shouted, pushing us back.
Chaos erupted.
Gunfire exploded in every direction.
I dropped to the ground instinctively, dragging Claire with me.
The air filled with smoke.
Shouting.
Pain.
And then…..
He appeared.
Cyprian.
Like something pulled straight out of war.
Cold.
Focused.
Deadly.
Two men fell before I even registered him pulling the trigger.
His eyes found me instantly.
"Raven!"
Relief slammed into my chest.
He moved toward us…
fast…
precise….
untouchable.
"Get behind me," he ordered.
We didn't hesitate.
Claire clung to me as we moved behind him, my heart racing as more men poured into the hallway.
"They're inside the house!" someone shouted.
"I can see that," Cyprian replied coldly.
Another shot…
another man down.
Then…
A sharp sound.
Different.
Cyprian's body jerked slightly.
My breath caught.
"No—"
Blood.
Dark.
Spreading through the sleeve of his shirt.
His arm.
He'd been shot.
But he didn't stop.
Didn't even flinch.
"Stay behind me," he repeated, voice harder now.
The guard beside us grabbed Claire.
"Move! Now!"
We ran.
Out the back.
Into the open air.
More men.
More gunfire.
Cars waiting.
Engines already running.
"Get in!" someone shouted.
We were pushed into the backseat….
Claire beside me, shaking….
me barely able to breathe….
Cyprian got in last.
Slamming the door.
"Go!"
The car sped off immediately.
Bullets hit the back of the vehicle.
Loud.
Terrifying.
Claire ducked down, crying.
I turned….
my eyes landing on him.
His head was tilted slightly back, jaw clenched.
His hand pressed tightly against his arm.
Blood.
Too much blood.
"Cyprian…"
His eyes opened.
Still sharp.
Still aware.
"I'm fine."
"You're bleeding…"
"It's nothing."
It wasn't nothing.
But he was still giving orders.
"Call ahead," he said to the driver. "We're not going back there."
"Yes, sir."
"We move to the second location."
My chest tightened.
Second location?
Claire looked at me, panicked.
"What is happening to us?"
I didn't have an answer.
Because deep down…
I already knew.
This wasn't random.
This was war.
And somehow…
We were in the middle of it.