What do you do when your heart yearns for something your mind can't embrace? How do you tame the feelings that keep surfacing for someone special, knowing you're committed to another?
Ana Rose embarks on a new journey as a secret agent. Although she...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Panic surges through my veins as I scramble to shove the chair and table back into their rightful spots. My heart races, each beat echoing my mounting fear. The thought of finding a hiding place races through my mind—anything to escape the impending threat. Being unarmed, the reality sinks in: facing this danger with nothing but my bare hands could spell clear death to me, or worse—torture before death.
I unexpectedly discover there's nowhere safe to hide. I'm left with two nightmarish choices, each more harrowing than the last: I can confront the Tiger and face a torturous death, or I can gamble on the frigid solitude of the vault's refrigerated room, where I might freeze to death—a slow and agonizing end also, though the second one offers a tiny chance of possible escape and survival.
My heart pounds in my chest as I nervously work the vault's lock, the metallic clicks finally echoing in the silence. With a deep breath, I push the heavy door open, stepping into the frigid, icy chamber beyond. I inhale deeply, before pushing the vault door closed behind me—its heavy lock mechanism clicks into place, sealing me inside, just as I hear our target stepping through the main door.
I strain to catch any sound from behind the sealed door, but the silence is deafening. My heart races with a desperate hope that he won't dare to open the vault.
The icy air bites at my skin, sending shivers coursing through my body as the frosty air seeps into my bones. I curl into myself, clutching the fabric of my hoodie tightly, desperately seeking warmth. Every instinct tells me to remain silent, to stay hidden until I can be certain he has left the lounge.
I position myself near the vault's door, every fiber of my being tuned to the faintest sound from our target. After what feels like an eternity of agonizing minutes, I finally catch the distant echo of the door shutting. A wave of relief washes over me—finally, he's gone. I quickly press my earpiece.
"Lisa, I'm stuck in the refrigeration room! Please, I need your help!" I plead, my voice quivering from the biting cold. But there's nothing—only silence. It's as if she's chosen to disregard my pleas completely.
I can't shake the thought of what she did to me; my mind is still grappling with the shock of accepting this new reality. I ignored the warning signs—those red flags she showed me—and now I'm left to confront the harsh truth: she really put me in serious danger. Yet, somehow, she's the only one who can save me now.
I've made the choice not to reach out to Ana. She's deep into her mission, and the last thing I want is to distract her with news that could unfocus her and put her in danger. It would also take a lot of time for her to get to me anyway.
As for Nate and Clara, they're stuck where they are too. With the stakes so high, they can't risk drawing attention by abandoning their game at the roulette table. Every move counts, and we all know how precarious this situation really is.
