Not fully. Not yet. But enough to send something cold down my spine.
I slow—just for a fraction of a second—and scan the battlefield again. Not as a soldier now. As someone who knows the man behind this.
I’ve been fighting my way through them for almost an hour.
And I haven’t seen Anton once.
Not a glimpse. Not a signal. No movement that suggests command of his presence. Nothing.
That’s when it hits me.
Anton isn’t here.
My jaw tightens as the realization settles fully into place. I know him. He doesn’t show his hand like this. He doesn’t burn resources without purpose. This—everything happening out here—was never meant to win. It was meant to distract.
A cold dread spreads through my chest. Because if he’s not here…then he’s somewhere that matters more. My head turns slowly toward the mansion. Toward the reinforced door.
Toward my wife and child.
“No…” I mutter under my breath.
Everything inside me collapses instantly.
I turn and race back to the house.
Chapter 27 – Valeria
The room feels too still.
Too quiet compared to what I know is happening outside.
Gunfire cracks in the distance—sharp, relentless, echoing across the estate walls. Sometimes close enough to make the glass tremble faintly. Sometimes far enough that it feels like a memory instead of something real.
I sit on the edge of the bed, my fingers wrapped tightly around the grip of the pistol.
Steady.
Controlled.
But not calm.
My heart hasn’t settled since he walked out that door.
Have they captured Anton already?
Are they winning?
Is Timofey…?
I shut the thought down before it can finish.
No.
He promised.
My grip tightens slightly.
I hate this.
