DARIAN P.O.V( point of view)
I shouldn't be alive. The pain in my side keeps reminding me. Every breath feels like someone is dragging a knife inside my ribcage. My left arm is wrapped in a cloth I tore from my shirt. It's soaked. The blood dries fast on the fabric and breaks again whenever I move.
But I'm still standing.....
Still breathing.....
Still watching her...
Adanna!
I see her silhouette through the broken window of the old warehouse she ran into. She doesn't know I'm close. She thinks I'm dead and he thinks she's alone.
And a part of me…
A selfish part of me…
Wants to keep it that way,because the moment she knows I'm alive, everything changes.
The secrets I've been running from will drag her deeper, but when I saw her escape that explosion…
When I saw her stumble into this dark street, shaking, confused, clutching that flash drive like her life depended on it…
My heart moved before my body did.
I limped after her, bleeding, weak,half-conscious but nothing....nothing, was going to stop me.
Not even death. I press my back against the wall, steadying my breath. The alley is quiet… too quiet. That's what bothers me. The organization never stops. They never leave a loose end. They would never let her vanish into darkness without sending someone after her.
And I know their style.
If they're coming…
They're already here.
A faint sound hits my ear....
A dry click...
A boot tapping....
A whisper in Hausa....
I clench my jaw.
"Damn… They're early."...
I move forward, slow, silent, my body screaming in pain. The night air chills the wound on my side. I feel blood leaking again.
But I keep going through the broken doorway, I see her again. She's sitting on the ground, laptop open, breathing hard. Her eyes are red, not from tears, but from exhaustion and fear. Her hair is scattered. Her clothes dusty. She looks like a woman who has lost too much… and is still losing more by the second.
I want to go to her.
I want to kneel beside her and say,
"I'm here."
But I can't, Instead, I scan the shadows and I see him.
A man in all black....Mask on.... gun raised. Walking slowly toward her while she's facing the laptop, unaware.
My heart jumps....
My body reacts before my mind does...
I throw a stone at the far side of the room....
CLANG!
The man stops, turns, points his weapon at the noise, then i use the moment to grab a broken iron pipe from the floor, moving silently behind him. Every step feels like needles piercing my ribs. My vision blurs for a second. I almost lose balance.
But I push on...
Just as he turns back toward Adanna, i slam the pipe across his wrist.
The gun flies....
He spins, shocked...
I don't give him time...
I strike again, this time across his jaw. His head snaps sideways. He staggers but doesn't fall.
He's strong and I'm bleeding.
He recovers fast and charges at me. His fist lands on my shoulder. Pain explodes through my body and I almost scream. Instead, I grit my teeth and answer with a blow to his stomach. He grunts and pushes me back.
We collide with the old shelves with metal crashes,dust rises.
Adanna gasps at the noise behind her.
No!.... not now...
She can't turn....
She can't see me....
The man reaches for a knife strapped to his leg, i kick his wrist. The knife skitters away.
But he grabs me by the throat.
My back slams against a wall.
Pain blinds me...
I hear him whisper,
"You're supposed to be dead."
I choke out,
"Sorry to disappoint."
Then I use the last drop of strength I have to slam my forehead into his nose.
He stumbles back, blood spraying.
I grab the pipe and swing one final hit and he collapses.
I lean against the wall, breathing hard, fighting dizziness. My entire side feels wet, warm....too warm.
I look down and saw more blood.
Damn!
I can't stay....
I can't let her see me.....
Not like this....
Not before I'm ready.....
Not before I explain everything....
But then I hear her voice...
Soft and broken.
"…Darian?"
My heart stops.
She heard the fight....
She recognizes the pattern....
My movements....
My sounds....
My style....
She's not sure but she feels it.
That bond we never asked for but couldn't escape.
I take one slow step back into the shadows.
"No…" she whispers, standing up, turning toward the dark corner I'm in. "It can't be… you're dead… right?"
I swallow hard.....I shouldn't answer, but my heart betrays me and I whisper.....
"Adanna… leave now."
She freezes....
Her eyes widen....
Her breath stops....
Her fingers tremble....
She hears me and she knows, but before she can move closer, I slip out through the broken doorway and disappear into the alley.
She calls again....
My name....
Soft.....
Pained...
Hopeful.....
It kills me but I don't stop.
I can't..... not yet.
Not until the full truth is ready.
Not until the danger around her dies.
Not until I'm strong enough to stand in front of her as more than a bleeding shadow.
ADANNA P.O.V (Point of view)
I know that voice.
I know it like I know my heartbeat.
I stand frozen, chest tight, staring at the dark corner where the sound came from. My whole body shakes. My mouth feels dry. My eyes burn.
It sounded like Darian....
No!...It was Darian.
But… he's dead.
I saw the explosion.
I saw the fire swallow him.
My mind tells me it's impossible.
My heart tells me it's him.
I try to move toward the dark corner, but my legs weaken. I drop to my knees beside the laptop, breathing fast. The room feels too quiet, like it's holding its breath with me.
I see the gun on the ground....
A knife...
Broken shelves....
Signs of a fight....
Someone saved me...
Someone fought for me...
Someone bled for me....
And that voice!
I press a hand over my mouth to stop myself from crying out. My heart races so fast it hurts. I rush to the doorway and look outside....
Nothing....
Just darkness...
Silence....
Shadows.....
But something on the ground catches my eye.
A drop of blood.
Then another.
And another.
A small trail.
I follow it, slowly, step by step, touching the wall to balance my shaking legs. The blood stops at the corner of the alley.
He's gone but he was here.
Alive and he left before I could reach him.
My chest tightens like I'm losing him all over again.
I whisper,
"You came for me…"
Then I wipe my eyes.
No time to break down.
I go back inside the warehouse and shut the door. My hands tremble as I open the laptop again. The flash drive is still in place. I click the next file.
And I freeze.....
On the screen is a list titled....
TARGET FILE - A.C.
PRIORITY: HIGHEST
REASON: CONNECTION TO SUBJECT D.C.
D.C?
My heart stops....
No!
No!
No way...
I scroll down. ...
There's a note....
Handwritten...
Scanned...
Short.....
"If she dies, everything ends.
If she lives, everything begins."
My breath catches.
Everything begins?
What does that even mean?
And who wrote it?
And why…and Why was Darian connected to this file?
Why am I connected to Darian in a way even the organization documented?
I close my eyes..
For a moment, I let myself feel everything—
Fear....
Confusion.....
Anger....
Hope....
And grief...
Because he's alive…
But not with me...
Alive… But bleeding somewhere.
Alive…
But running from something even I don't understand.
I whisper into the empty room,
"Darian… why didn't you let me see you?"
The wind moves through the broken window.
It feels like a reply.
A soft touch....
A warning....
A promise...
I stand....
I'm done running blindly....
If Darian is alive…
If he saved me secretly…
If he whispered my name like a man fighting death…
Then I'm not stopping until I find him.
Not until I know everything.
Not until I understand what binds us.
Not until the truth comes out.
Whatever this is…
Whatever danger follows me…
Whatever secrets hide behind these files…
I'm going to face it.
For him!
For me!
For us!
To be continued.....