haniel stood with his hands in his pockets, waiting. His mind had been racing ever since he'd received Zara's me

approached. She was dressed in all black, her sharp eyes locked onto him with an int

ith danger. "The blueprint you gave me-it's fake. I kne

He had expected her to catch on, but he had made sure the fake bluepri

ly. "But you should've known better than to think I'd hand

n't after that blueprint for no reason. We both know what Project Helix is capable of, a

ly how high the stakes are. But you're barking up the wrong tree. My father may run S.A.T.

gatekeeper to everything S.A.T.F.A.R. held secret. But now, standing in the alleyway, she understood. It wasn't Edward she needed to wor

ce wavered, just slightly, as the puzzle pieces fell int

A convenient distraction. The real work, the real power-it's be

. "You think you can manipulate everyone around you? You're not untouchable, Na

erous. "Is that so? And who do you think will believe you, Zara? A disgraced agent trying to

the others you've manipulated. I know people, powerful people who would love to get their hands on

on cold and calculating. "And what ma

nking he was just another privileged heir who had been born into power. But now she saw him for wha

g me," Zara whispered,

you're the one who's lost. And if you know what's

not yet. With a final glare, she turned and stalked off into the night, disa

commands, opening a backdoor connection to S.A.T.F.A.R.'s security system. He had anticipated this moment, knowing that Zara and her n

screens flickered to life as he logged into the mainframe, his fingers flying across the keyboard. He quickly scanne

ght his attention. Another breach atte

he system weeks ago. With a few keystrokes, he initiated a sophisticated firewall that no

his defenses. The hackers on the other end would find their own systems compromised wi

the counterstrike. The virus would infiltrate the hackers' network, feeding him information on their operations without the

Zara knew he was the real threat now, but she had no idea how deep his control ran or how many steps ahead he tru

ar: this wasn't just about Helix anymore.

had no inten