A beat.
“And murder.”
No one disagrees.
78
Aaron
Location: Briefing Room
Time: Minutes Later
The board fractures into purpose.
Three cities.
Three live crises.
Three simultaneous fronts.
Frankfurt.
Milan.
Istanbul.
Each one ticking toward disaster.
Each one exactly where he wants them.
We don’t stop them.
We step into them.
“Three teams,” I say, voice cutting clean through the room. “One per city.”
No hesitation.
No questions.
They’re already moving.
Gear shifts. Weapons checked. Routes calculated.
Delta Five doesn’t need instructions.
They need direction.
“And the target?” Cal asks, though we both already know the answer.
I look at the screen.
At the ghost behind all of it.
“Kade.”
The name lands like a promise.
