The silence in the farmhouse was thick, broken only by the quiet hum of encrypted systems coming online. Protocol Grey wasn't just a security measure—a declaration, a signal to everyone within Sabrina's circle that the game had shifted into a new tier of danger.
All signals were masked.
All channels were rerouted.
No one in, no one out.
Sabrina sat in the central control room, watching the blackout cascade across Arkaline's internal servers like a digital eclipse. Her fingers hovered over the screen momentarily before locking the last node.
"We're live," Nia confirmed behind her. "No leaks. Anyone trying to find you right now will be chasing shadows."
"Good," Sabrina replied. "I want the illusion of silence to be deafening."
Just then, her comm tablet blinked.
XD - REQUESTING CONTACT
Sabrina's lips curved slightly. Of course, he noticed. She tapped to accept the video feed.
Xader's face appeared calm as ever, lit by the low light of his study. He looked like he belonged behind a mahogany desk in a mansion's hidden wing—which, to be fair, he was.
"Protocol Grey?" he asked without greeting. "You don't make small decisions, do you, Sabrina?"
"I've never had the luxury of small decisions, Xader," she answered evenly.
He studied her carefully, his expression unreadable. "Is this about the letter?"
Sabrina didn't flinch. "Partly. And what followed. We've been compromised. Our shadows are no longer staying in the dark."
A pause. Then: "You have proof?"
She turned her screen, showing the paused drone footage of the masked figures patrolling near the estate's perimeter. "They were on rotation. Two-person teams. Military precision. Not mercs. Professionals."
Xader exhaled slowly. "How close?"
"Close enough to smell the lavender in my bathwater."
A slight smirk tugged at his mouth, but he nodded. "And what do you need from me?"
"Nothing," Sabrina said. "This isn't a call for help. It's a courtesy. You gave me Arkaline. I'm keeping it running. But from now on, I choose the terms."
"And if those terms go against the board?"
"Then I'll replace the board."
For the first time, Xader leaned back, clasping his hands in thought. "You've grown... sharper."
"I was worse. You just didn't know."
Silence stretched between them, the kind laced with mutual respect and veiled threats. Then he asked, more softly, "And Leo?"
Sabrina's voice remained cold. "I met him. He made his pitch. I'm considering it."
"I see."
Sabrina narrowed her eyes. "Do you? Because Nia's been asking questions. Questions I've asked myself. About you."
Xader didn't blink. "Go on."
"How you found me so quickly when I left. How Arkaline was waiting, perfectly suited for my disappearance. How you always seem to be two moves ahead, yet never touched by any of this chaos."
"And you think I'm behind the watchers?"
"And how you seem to know everything that I haven't even shared with you."
"I think you're a man who doesn't let his investments go unmonitored."
Xader smiled. "And you're a woman who knows how to play chess."
She said nothing.
Finally, he said, "I won't interfere with your protocols. You've earned the right to protect what's yours. But if you need to disappear again... just remember, Sabrina—disappearing doesn't mean you're free. It just means you're hidden."
She met his gaze. "I'm not hiding anymore."
The call ended.
Thousands of kilometers away, in Xader's estate in Santorini, the man moved from his desk to a sleek console hidden beneath a mirrored panel. With a flick, the screen changed to a feed of The Pact.
All four of them—Zay, Malik, Leo, and Dante—are captured in various locations: a sparring session in the mountains, Malik's meeting with a shadowed contact, Dante's transit path rerouted by a planted informant, Leo's meeting with Sabrina in the Fitzroy gallery.
Xader tapped a contact on the screen.
"Move forward with Phase Three," he said into the silence. "Make sure they follow the breadcrumbs. Especially Zayden Cross."
The distorted voice on the other end crackled before responding, low and metallic. "He's growing suspicious. Cross questioned two of his handlers this morning—about inconsistencies in the surveillance reports. He's begun to notice that every lead brings him just close enough to feel progress, but not enough to find her. He's pacing like a man who knows he's in a maze. One more false clue, and he'll start digging in the wrong direction on purpose, just to see who flinches. We need to tighten the illusion. Or prepare for containment."
"Just do what I said."
A distorted voice replied, "And Sabrina?"
A pause.
"She's close to remembering why she left. Let her get there on her own."
The screen dimmed. Outside his villa, the Aegean Sea remained calm. But inside, the war had already begun.