Thunder rumbled over Barcelona.
It was just past dawn, but the sky had already darkened with storm clouds. Nature itself seemed to echo the unraveling of Julian Blackwood's empire. Within twelve hours of the raid on El Casal del Sol, news had broken of financial irregularities, illicit accounts, and multiple warrants issued across three continents.
Aurora stared at the headlines on her tablet, the glow casting shadows under her eyes.
Billionaire Julian Blackwood Under Investigation for Global Financial Crimes.
Interpol Raids Tech Broker Estate in Spain.
Anonymous Leak Shatters Multinational Empire—Data Trail Points to Espionage.
But none of it felt like victory.
Not when Julian was still alive.
Not when she couldn't shake the feeling that something darker was still waiting for them.
Damien entered the room quietly, dressed in a charcoal T-shirt and black jeans. His usual composed air was tempered by exhaustion and something else—something that lingered behind his eyes.
Uncertainty.
"You should sleep," she said, watching him.
"I can't," he murmured. "Not until he's behind bars."
Aurora set the tablet down. "Interpol has enough evidence to charge him fifty different ways. You know that, right?"
Damien shook his head. "Julian has layers of protection—shell companies, blackmail, off-the-record deals. They won't get him unless he makes a mistake."
"Then we make him," she said, voice firm.
He looked at her for a long moment. "You think he'll come after us?"
"I know he will."
---
Three hours later, their fears came true.
Maxwell burst into the room, breath ragged.
"Noah's missing."
Time stopped.
Aurora stood, her heart slamming into her ribs. "What do you mean missing?"
"He never made it to the backup location," Maxwell said. "His security escort was compromised. The tracking chip went dark ten minutes ago."
Damien was already grabbing his phone. "Get me Mateo. Now."
But the phone lit up before he could dial—a blocked number, ringing insistently.
He answered with a growl. "Where is he?!"
Julian's voice, silk and poison, purred through the line.
"Did you think it would be that easy? You take a few files, ruin a few deals, and I just let you live?"
Aurora snatched the phone. "If you touch him—"
Julian laughed. "Relax. The boy's alive. For now."
Her stomach flipped.
"What do you want?"
"An exchange," Julian said. "You and Damien. Alone. No Maxwell. No drones. You surrender yourselves, and I'll let the boy go."
"You expect us to believe that?"
"You don't have to," Julian said. "You just have to decide: your lives, or his."
The line went dead.
---
The room spun.
Aurora gripped the back of the chair, trying to breathe.
Damien's face was carved from stone. "We're not giving ourselves up."
She looked at him. "He's our son."
"And we can't save him if we're dead," Damien said. "Julian doesn't want a trade. He wants vengeance."
"But if we don't go, Noah dies."
"No," Maxwell interrupted. "We don't let him choose the battlefield. We flip it."
Damien turned to him. "How?"
"We let Julian think we're surrendering," Maxwell said. "We set up a meeting point—public, but isolated enough to control. We plant surveillance, snipers, and backup units on standby."
Aurora's voice was hoarse. "And if he doesn't bring Noah?"
"Then we take him anyway," Damien said. "And we burn his world down."
---
That night, the storm broke over a cliffside villa on the Costa Brava.
It was a place Julian had used before—an old monastery converted into a fortress-like retreat, surrounded by jagged rocks and crashing waves.
Aurora and Damien arrived separately, wearing black and carrying only what was necessary—no weapons, no wires.
At least not visible ones.
Maxwell's team was already in place, stationed around the perimeter with sniper rifles and drones cloaked in the storm clouds.
They entered the villa through a carved wooden door that groaned as it opened.
Julian stood in the center of the old sanctuary, dressed in white like some twisted priest of war. Noah was beside him, bound to a chair but visibly unharmed.
Aurora exhaled shakily. "Noah…"
The boy looked up—scared, but brave.
"Mom?" he whispered.
"Let him go," Damien said, stepping forward.
Julian smiled. "First, let's talk."
"You want us," Aurora said. "Here we are."
Julian gestured, and two guards moved forward. "Search them."
They complied, patting down Damien and Aurora, removing a single hidden knife from Damien's boot. The guards nodded: clear.
Julian waved them back.
"Noah," Aurora said softly. "It's okay, baby. We're going to get you out of here."
Julian laughed. "Such drama. He's barely been here an hour."
"He's a child," Damien growled. "And you're a coward."
Julian's smile faltered.
"You know," he said, circling them, "I used to admire you. Both of you. Smart. Loyal. Ruthless when it counted. But then you got soft. You fell in love."
Aurora stepped in front of Damien. "Love isn't weakness."
"No," Julian said, stopping in front of her. "It's leverage."
He snapped his fingers.
A hidden panel in the wall opened—and Mateo stepped out.
Gun in hand.
Aurora's blood turned cold.
"What the hell—"
Damien took a step forward. "Mateo. Don't do this."
But Mateo only smiled, eyes empty.
"I made my choice," he said.
"You helped us—"
"I helped myself," Mateo said. "Julian pays more. And he promised me something you couldn't."
Aurora narrowed her eyes. "What?"
"Redemption," Mateo said. "A clean slate. My name erased from every kill list, every bounty, every file."
Julian stepped between them. "See? Loyalty is just a price tag."
And then everything went to hell.
---
A deafening blast shook the villa—Maxwell's team detonating a charge outside to signal breach.
Gunfire erupted as snipers took down the rooftop guards. Screams echoed through the ancient stone halls.
Julian cursed and shoved Noah toward Mateo.
"Kill them!" he screamed.
But Mateo hesitated.
Just for a second.
And it was enough.
Damien lunged, slamming into Mateo with a roar. The gun went off—missing—before skittering across the floor.
Aurora sprinted to Noah, slicing through the ropes with a hidden blade from her necklace.
He threw his arms around her, sobbing. "Mom!"
"Shhh, baby. I've got you."
Julian grabbed a second pistol and aimed it at Damien.
"No!" Aurora shouted.
But before he could fire, a shot rang out from above.
Julian stumbled—clutching his shoulder.
Maxwell's voice crackled in her earpiece. "He's hit. Secure the boy. We're moving in."
Chaos reigned.
Guards fled or fell. Sirens howled in the distance.
Julian collapsed to his knees, blood staining his white suit.
Damien stood over him, breathing hard.
"You lose," he said.
Julian looked up, hatred etched in his face. "You think this ends with me?"
"No," Damien said. "But it starts with you."
---
The aftermath was a blur.
Interpol arrived. Julian was taken into custody.
Mateo was nowhere to be found—vanished into the storm.
Aurora held Noah close as paramedics checked them both. He was shaken, but unharmed.
Damien stood beside them, eyes never leaving her face.
"You okay?" he asked softly.
She nodded. "We will be."
He touched Noah's hair. "I'm sorry."
Noah looked up at him. "You came for me."
"I always will," Damien said.
Aurora's throat tightened.
Later, as they sat in the back of the ambulance, wrapped in blankets and surrounded by flashing lights, Aurora turned to Damien.
"What now?"
He looked out at the storm-washed horizon.
"Now," he said, "we go home."
---