Chapter 52
2283words
Angeles Crest | The Vault | Observation Deck (Overlook Sector B)
The wind outside whispered through steel slats as Lucian stepped onto the observation deck, hands tucked into his coat pockets. The evening light had faded into cold gray. Below, through reinforced glass, the canyons of Angeles Crest sprawled out like a forgotten battlefield—quiet now, but never truly still.
Eli was already there. Standing alone. Arms braced on the railing. Eyes on nothing and everything at once.
Lucian didn’t announce himself. He walked up beside him and let the silence settle. It wasn’t uncomfortable. Just… unfinished.
After a moment, Lucian broke it.
“You’ve been quiet.”
Eli didn’t turn. “We made it out.”
Lucian nodded, barely.
“She did what she had to.”
Eli’s jaw shifted. “She always does.”
Lucian studied him, then looked back out at the vast night.
“You mean she did what none of us could.”
“That’s what you admire about her, isn’t it?”
Eli gave a soft exhale—half-scoff, half-confession. “What’s not to admire?”
He finally glanced at Lucian. “She walks into fire like it’s memory. And walks out like it didn’t burn her.”
Lucian’s voice dropped.
“But it did.”
Eli didn’t respond.
“You love her,” Lucian said—not accusing, just stating.
Still, Eli looked away.
A longer silence. The kind that doesn’t demand to be filled—but waits.
Finally, Eli answered.
“I never needed her to know.”
Lucian turned to him fully.
“That’s not what I asked.”
Eli’s throat worked with the weight of it. His voice, when it came, was quiet. Clear.
“Yes. I love her.”
“But you’re the one she runs toward.”
Lucian held his gaze, the ache of shared history sitting heavy between them—but not sharp. There was no rivalry here. Just recognition.
“So what now?” Lucian asked.
Eli was quiet for a beat. Then he said it, like it had already been decided.
“I’ll go away.”
Lucian turned toward him slightly. “I don’t think Kristina will like that.”
Eli’s lips twitched—something between bitter and resigned. “But you would.”
Lucian didn’t answer right away.
Then, finally: “As much as I want you to go… Kristina surely won’t. After all these years, she found you again. She won’t let you go.”
Eli looked out over the dark expanse, jaw tight.
“What about you?” he asked quietly. “I don’t think you’d want another man loving your woman.”
Lucian’s voice was steady. “I’ll go with whatever Kristina wants.”
That answer landed. Not as surrender. As truth.
The silence stretched again, not cold—but heavier now.
Then Eli spoke, softer this time.
“I came because of Kristina. She was the only reason I joined your company.”
A pause. His voice thickened just slightly.
“But you became my best friend too.”
Lucian let that settle. No need to answer. Not yet.
The wind outside whispered through the slats again, and the moment, though quiet, didn’t feel unfinished anymore.
The Vault | Strategic Ops Hub
Late Evening
The air in the Ops Hub was still, humming only with the low pulse of monitors and distant generators. Thick reinforced walls dulled the outside wind. Inside, the glow of tactical screens cast soft blue shadows across tired faces.
Lucian sat at the head of the long steel table, fingers steepled. Beside him, Eli leaned back in his chair, jaw taut. Across from them, Ash absentmindedly spun a flash drive between his fingers, while Vex scrolled through decrypted files on a nearby tablet. Sebastian was the last to arrive, quiet but alert, sliding into the seat closest to the door.
Someone noticed the empty chair.
“She’s still asleep?” Vex asked, glancing toward the hallway that led to the infirmary.
Lucian nodded. “First time she’s rested after a mission. No knives under the pillow. No combat boots half-laced.”
“She earned it,” Ash muttered. “We all did. But for her… this one was personal.”
Sebastian added quietly, “The moment we got back, she didn’t say a word. Just walked to the med wing and passed out. Didn’t even take off her holster.”
No one laughed. There was a gravity to it. Not pity. Just recognition.
Lucian let the silence settle for a beat before clearing his throat.
“Alistair Miller has been taken into custody. Transported to a black site in Nevada. He’s not getting out—not this time.”
“Project Aurelius?” Vex asked, without looking up.
“Shut down. Permanently. Homeland confirmed. Their teams are sweeping what’s left of the Glass Citadel.”
Eli’s voice cut through, low and clipped.
“It’s over.” A pause. “At least this part.”
Ash stopped spinning the drive. “We recovered files from The Vault’s archive—stuff Kristina had locked away. Some of it links directly to offshore accounts. Shell companies. Maybe even names of silent investors in Aurelius.”
“Useful,” Lucian said. “The kind of leverage we’ll need going forward.”
Sebastian looked toward the hallway again. “What happens when she wakes up?”
Lucian didn’t answer right away. Then:
“She’ll want to know what’s next.”
The Vault | Medical Wing
Kristina’s eyes fluttered open to the dim, sterile glow of the medical bay’s overhead lights. The soft, rhythmic hum of machines filled the quiet room, steady and oddly comforting. Her body felt heavy, every muscle aching from the day’s battles, but her mind was alert enough to catch the faint sound of footsteps approaching.
Lucian stepped inside quietly, hands tucked deep into the pockets of his coat. When he saw her awake, the tension in his usually guarded face softened, a flicker of relief crossing his features.
“How are you feeling?” he asked gently, pulling a chair close to her bedside.
Kristina blinked slowly, throat dry but voice calm and steady. “I’m… okay. Just tired.”
Lucian studied her for a long moment, his eyes searching. “You’ve been out for hours. Finally got some rest.”
She gave him a small, tired smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.
After a brief pause, Lucian’s tone shifted, cautious but sincere. “There’s something you should know… Eli—he’s thinking about leaving.”
Kristina’s eyes snapped wide open, alarm flashing through them. “What? No. Where is he?”
Lucian raised a hand slowly, a gesture meant to calm her but unable to hide the worry beneath. “He’s still here. For now. But after everything, he’s… uncertain if this fight is still his to fight.”
A flicker of panic hovered in her chest, but she forced it down, steadying her voice. “I need to talk to him,” she said firmly.
Lucian’s jaw clenched just slightly—jealousy and something deeper simmered beneath his calm exterior. Yet he gave a slow nod.
“I figured you would. And… I get it.”
Kristina met his gaze, gratitude shining through her exhaustion. “After all these years… I found him again. I won’t let him slip away.”
Lucian exhaled slowly, his breath carrying a weight of understanding and unspoken feelings. “I know.”
For a moment, they sat in quiet solidarity—two people bound by shared struggles, loyalties tangled but unwavering.
The Vault | Armory Corridor
Sebastian leaned casually against the cold metal wall, arms crossed, watching Eli as he absentmindedly traced his fingers over the grip of a rifle. The dim light cast long shadows, matching the weight settling between them.
“So,” Sebastian said quietly, breaking the silence, “what do you really feel about Kristina? And more importantly… do you think leaving now would be the right thing? Or would you even be able to walk away?”
Eli let out a dry, almost humorless laugh, shaking his head. “Lucian already spilled the truth, huh?”
Sebastian nodded, waiting.
Eli’s gaze dropped to the weapon in his hands. “I don’t know if there’s any good that comes from me sticking around. Honestly? I don’t think I’ll ever be okay with seeing her love someone else.” His voice cracked, raw with honesty. “I made my choice to hide from her—all those years running, keeping my distance. But now that she’s back in my life, it feels like that choice is the one coming back to bite me. Hard.”
A heavy silence fell. Sebastian’s eyes softened with understanding. “If you could rewind… go back to the start, would you have told her? Been honest from the very beginning?”
Eli swallowed hard, voice barely above a whisper. “I don’t know. I’m not sure I ever thought I deserved that. I never saw myself as worthy of Kristina. Back then, I was just a nobody. Still am, really.” He looked up briefly, haunted. “I’ll never be like Lucian. I’ll never be able to give her the kind of life she deserves—safe, steady, without the ghosts.”
He shook his head, frustration and pain tangled in the gesture. “Maybe I was scared… scared that if I showed her who I really was, she’d walk away for good.”
Sebastian stepped closer, voice steady but firm. “Being worthy isn’t always about the life you can give her or the past you carry. Sometimes it’s about the fight you’re willing to put up—how much you’re ready to stand by her, no matter what.”
Eli’s eyes met Sebastian’s, a flicker of something fragile but uncertain. “Maybe… maybe that’s all I’ve got left to offer. But I don’t know if it’ll ever be enough.”
He let out a long breath, the weight of his doubts pressing down on him, unresolved and heavy.
Sebastian’s gaze softened. “It’s okay to not have all the answers right now. What matters is you keep showing up.”
Eli looked away, voice quieter, almost a whisper. “I want to fight… but sometimes I wonder if I’m just setting myself up to lose.”
Lucian led Kristina through the quiet corridors, their footsteps echoing softly against cold steel walls. The weight of everything that had happened hung heavy between them, unspoken but undeniable.
They reached the armory door. Through the small window, they saw Eli sitting beside Sebastian, the room’s harsh lights casting sharp shadows over their faces.
Kristina took a breath and stepped inside, her voice steady but clear. “Eli.”
Eli looked up, surprised, caught off guard by their arrival.
Sebastian stood immediately, nodding to Kristina. “I’ll give you two some privacy.” He stepped out without another word.
Lucian moved to the doorway but didn’t leave. Instead, he lingered just behind the wall, out of sight but close enough to hear.
Kristina’s gaze locked on Eli’s. “Are you really going away? Are you going to leave me?”
Eli hesitated, the conflict evident in his eyes. Finally, he exhaled, the truth spilling out. “I love you, Kristina… but staying means watching you love someone else. I don’t want to be the reason either of you gets hurt.”
A tear slipped down Kristina’s cheek. Without thinking, she stepped forward and pulled him into a tight embrace, her voice cracking as she whispered, “Please don’t go. Don’t leave me.”
Eli froze in her arms for a moment, unsure of what to do with the whirlwind of emotion collapsing in on them. Then, slowly, as if surrendering to something he’d fought too long, he wrapped his arms around her.
“You don’t understand,” he murmured. “Watching you love someone else… it’s like tearing off a scab that never heals. And I know I have no right to feel this way—not after hiding from you. But I still do.”
Kristina shook her head, her voice raw. “You didn’t give up anything. You were trying to protect me. But you’re here now. That has to mean something.”
He pulled back slightly, just enough to see her face. “It does. God, it does. But what good is it if I’m just standing here… aching for something I know I can’t have?”
“You don’t know that,” she whispered.
“Yes, I do,” Eli said quietly. “Lucian loves you. He’s everything I’m not. And I can see it—you love him too.”
Kristina opened her mouth to argue, but nothing came out.
“I’m not asking you to choose,” Eli continued. “I just need to find a way to survive this without falling apart. And I’m not sure I can do that if I stay.”
Silence settled between them, heavy and painful. Kristina’s hands clutched at his shirt like she could anchor him there.
“Please don’t go,” she said. “I’ve already lost you once. I can’t go through that again.”
Eli looked away, jaw clenched, the war behind his eyes still raging.
Outside, just beyond the threshold, Lucian stood with his head bowed—every word reaching him like glass against skin.
Kristina stayed clutched to Eli’s chest, but something shifted in the air — a quiet tension, like the world had paused to breathe.
Eli lifted his head, instinct drawing his gaze toward the hallway.
A shadow moved behind the doorway. Then, deliberately, Lucian stepped into view—no longer hidden.
He didn’t speak. He didn’t flinch. He just stood there, hands still in his pockets, eyes fixed on the two of them.
Their eyes met.
For a long moment, neither of them moved. They simply looked at each other — Eli, holding Kristina; Lucian, standing tall but silent. No mask. No armor.
There was no anger in Lucian’s expression, no accusation. Just a quiet understanding laced with something older, deeper. Pain. Respect. Resignation.
And maybe… acceptance.
Eli’s jaw tensed. His arms tightened around Kristina — protectively, maybe instinctively — before he gently, almost reluctantly, let go.
Kristina glanced between them, heart thudding. “Lucian—”
But Lucian shook his head softly. “It’s okay,” he said, voice low but steady. “I’m not here to make you choose.”
He looked at Eli again, fully now. Unafraid. “Just don’t disappear again. Not like this. Not without saying goodbye.”
Eli met his gaze without flinching.
And after a long pause, he gave a single nod — not quite agreement, but something close. Something open.
Some truths are shared whether we speak them or not.
—To be continued.
