He turned, catching sight of Drew through the haze.Blood streaked down Drew’s side, dark against his clothing, but he was alive.The only thought that cut through the chaos was the instinct to pull him close—to kiss him, to remind himself they’d both survived—but there was too much to do.
A voice carried over the crackle of the dying flames.“Got one alive!”
Kael looked up.Tane stood a few meters away, his weapon steady as he held it on a kneeling man.He recognized him as the man who had spoken to them in Hawaiian.The younger operative’s ankles were crossed, his hands laced over his head, his face blank but unafraid.
“Unarmed,” Tane said.“He didn’t even reach for the rifle.”
Kael walked over slowly, boots crunching on gravel.His weapon stayed trained on the captured man’s head.The man didn’t flinch, didn’t blink, just watched Kael with a strange calm.
“Name,” Kael ordered.
“Victor.”His voice was quiet, almost conversational and his gaze shot to Drew.“He already knew that.”
Kael shot a glance at Drew to see him nod.
Kael’s jaw flexed.“So, you’re a member of this Directorate bullshit.”
Victor’s shoulders seemed to slump.“I was.”
Interesting answer.Kael frowned.“Why are you still breathing?”
Victor’s gaze didn’t waver.“Because I didn’t fire.”
Tane’s stance shifted, uneasy.“Surge, he had the drop on me earlier, but he didn’t take it.”
Kael’s eyes narrowed.He crouched, bringing himself level with the kneeling man.“Why not?”
Victor shrugged slightly.“Maybe I’m tired of killing people who don’t deserve it.”
“Then why the hell were you here?”Kael pressed, voice low and hard.“In my home, shooting at my family.”
“Because I believed the lies I was told, I thought I was fighting for something good.”Victor’s tone was bitter, flat.“Turns out I was wrong.The Directorate...they sell nothing but falsehoods and deal in monsters.”
Kael studied him for a moment.There was no panic in Victor’s face, no desperation to survive.Just emptiness.That unsettled him more than rage would have.
Something about the man came to him in that instant.“You don’t care if you live or die, do you?”
Victor met his gaze, calm and certain.“Not much difference either way.”
Tane’s voice came again, quieter now.“He’s not lying.”There was tension in his tone, like the realization bothered him more than he wanted to admit.
Drew stepped up beside Kael, his expression unreadable.“You believed Marcus.I did too once.You think you’re doing good until you see the bodies pile up before you, and the stories no longer ring true.”
Victor’s eyes flicked toward Drew.“Yeah.I read about you.The defector who vanished.They said you went rogue.”
Drew gave a grim smile.“Guess that makes two of us.”
Kael looked between them.“So, what now, Victor?You always switch sides when the blood gets inconvenient?”
Victor hesitated.“I don’t know what I believe anymore.”
Tane exhaled, stepping closer.“Maybe some one-on-one time with me will help him figure it out.”His grin was quick and sharp.“I’ve got a talent for...persuasion.”
Kael raised an eyebrow.“You volunteering to babysit?”
“Call it curiosity.”Tane’s eyes never left Victor.“Besides, if he’s lying, I’ll know.”
Kael considered it for a long beat, then nodded.“Fine.Take him.No bruises unless they’re necessary.”
