The mansion alarms screamed through the night.
Red emergency lights flashed violently across the grand hall.
Emily's heart pounded so loudly she could barely hear anything else.
"They're already inside," Dr. Adrian Voss had said.
The words echoed inside her mind.
Alexander's voice cut sharply through the chaos.
"Everyone take positions!"
The guards immediately moved into action, spreading throughout the mansion with their weapons ready.
Daniel rushed toward the large window and looked outside.
His expression darkened.
"Alexander… this is bad."
Alexander's eyes narrowed.
"How bad?"
Daniel turned the security tablet toward him.
On the screen were several black vehicles breaking through the front gates.
Men dressed in black poured out of the cars.
Every one of them wore the same symbol.
The same symbol from the torn cloth.
Emily felt a wave of fear crash over her.
"They're from the organization."
Dr. Voss stood calmly in the middle of the hall as if the situation didn't concern him at all.
Alexander's voice turned dangerously cold.
"You planned this."
Voss smiled slightly.
"I simply prepared for resistance."
Alexander stepped closer to him.
"You brought an army to my home."
Voss shrugged.
"You have something that belongs to us."
Emily clenched her fists.
"I don't belong to anyone!"
Suddenly—
BANG!
A loud explosion shook the mansion.
The front doors shattered open.
Emily flinched as armed men rushed inside.
The guards immediately opened fire.
The hall erupted into chaos.
Gunshots echoed.
Glass shattered.
Furniture overturned.
Alexander grabbed Emily's hand.
"Stay close to me."
Daniel pulled Emily behind a large marble pillar.
"Don't move," he warned.
But Emily could barely breathe.
The sound of gunfire and shouting filled the entire mansion.
She looked toward the center of the hall.
Dr. Voss was gone.
"Where did he go?" she whispered.
Daniel cursed quietly.
"He slipped out during the explosion."
Alexander fought two attackers at once, knocking one to the ground with a powerful punch before disarming the other.
His expression was terrifying.
Anyone who came near Emily was immediately taken down.
But the attackers kept coming.
More and more of them poured through the broken entrance.
Emily's head suddenly began to throb again.
Sharp pain surged through her skull.
She gasped and held her head.
"Emily?" Daniel said quickly.
"I… can't…"
Her vision blurred.
The noise around her became distant.
Then suddenly—
Another wave of strange energy rushed through her body.
The lights above the hall flickered violently.
The marble floor beneath their feet began to tremble.
Daniel's eyes widened.
"Oh no."
Emily felt like something inside her was breaking free.
"I can't control it!"
Alexander turned immediately when he heard her voice.
"Emily!"
But it was too late.
CRASH!
Several large windows exploded at once.
The shockwave knocked several attackers off their feet.
Even the guards looked stunned.
Emily stared at her trembling hands.
"I didn't mean to…"
Daniel grabbed her shoulders.
"You need to calm down!"
But the more frightened she became—
The stronger the strange force around her grew.
The chandeliers shook violently.
Tables slid across the floor.
The entire mansion seemed to tremble.
Alexander quickly rushed toward her.
"Emily, look at me."
Her breathing was uneven.
"I'm scared."
Alexander held her face gently.
"Listen to my voice."
Slowly, the shaking around them began to settle.
The lights stopped flickering.
The energy faded.
Emily collapsed slightly against him.
"I'm sorry."
Alexander wrapped an arm around her protectively.
"This isn't your fault."
But just when it seemed like things were calming down—
A loud crash came from the back hallway.
Several armed men burst into the room.
Before anyone could react—
One of them grabbed Emily from behind.
A cloth covered her mouth instantly.
Emily struggled.
"Mmm!"
Alexander's eyes widened.
"Emily!"
The man holding her stepped backward toward the exit.
Another attacker raised a gun toward Alexander.
"Don't move!"
Alexander froze.
His eyes burned with fury.
"Let her go."
The attacker laughed.
"Dr. Voss sends his regards."
Emily fought desperately, but the drug on the cloth was already making her vision blur.
Her strength faded.
The last thing she saw—
Was Alexander rushing toward her.
And the terrified look in his eyes.
Then everything went dark.
Alexander's voice echoed through the hall.
"EMILY!"