Chapter 29. A Lead

S:

It’s almost morning when the alert pings.

Kieran jerks upright from where he’s been slouched over the desk, eyes bloodshot, fingers twitching like a live wire.

I haven’t moved in hours.

Barely blinked.

Just stared at the same security feed, replaying the same dead silence, waiting for the goddamn universe to crack.

And now, it finally does.

“Got something,” Kieran mutters, voice sharp, low. “One of the plate scanners picked up the car—five miles out of the city. Near the old train yard.”

I’m already on my feet.

“Send the team. Quiet. No lights, no sirens. He sees us coming, he runs.”

“Copy.” His fingers fly across the keyboard, calling in the extraction team.

I make it halfway to the garage before I stop—turning toward the hallway where their bedrooms are.

Rae’s.

Eliza’s.

I don’t want to leave them.

But I have to.

I flag down one of the maids—Sophia. Reliable. Quiet. Loyal beyond