The safehouse door creaked open, but Faisal didn't enter like a conqueror this time. His steps were slower, heavier — the weight of an empire on one shoulder, and the fragile future of his family on the other.
The small apartment smelled like jasmine, the soft scent Noora always filled their home with. She stood by the window, her hands resting on her growing belly, her gaze lost in the endless horizon of the city Faisal now secretly controlled.
He stood at the doorway, silently watching her — the only peace left in his world.
"You're home," she said softly, without turning.
"I'm here," he replied, his voice lower than usual.
"Are you?" Noora turned, her eyes searching his face.
"Or are you still out there, with them?"
Faisal swallowed hard. There were no lies sharp enough to cut through her intuition.
"I'm trying to protect us," he said.
"By becoming the thing you promised me you'd never be?" Her voice didn't break, but her heart was cracking with every word.
"Do you even remember why we fell in love? Because you wanted a life outside of all that darkness. You told me… you'd leave it all, for us."
Faisal stepped closer, resting his palm gently over her stomach.
"Everything I'm doing… it's for him. For you. For us."
"If I leave now, they'll find us. There's no hiding anymore."
"They don't just want power — they want to erase our bloodline from history."
Tears welled in Noora's eyes, but she didn't let them fall.
"Then let them take me, Faisal. But I will not raise our child in a world where his father is a ghost who kills for peace."
The words hit like gunshots — precise, each one cutting deeper than any enemy blade.
Faisal's jaw clenched.
"I can't let you die. I won't."
"But I can't walk away from this fight either."
Noora's voice softened, trembling.
"Then choose, Faisal. Right now."
"Choose us, or choose the war."
"Because you can't have both."
Across the city, in a bunker beneath a private compound, Rayyan, Malik, and Ameer sat around a holographic map, tracing the next families they were about to destroy.
"The Unseen Council is moving faster than we expected," Ameer muttered, fingers scrolling through encrypted messages.
"They've locked down financial routes in Europe and Asia."
"Doesn't matter," Malik growled.
"We'll burn them out, street by street, until they have no one left to fight for them."
Rayyan's eyes stayed on the screen, but his mind was somewhere else — on Faisal.
"We need him fully focused," Rayyan said softly.
"Without him, we're just fire and smoke. He's the one who turns chaos into victory."
"Then why does it feel like his mind's somewhere else?" Ameer asked quietly.
They all knew the answer.
"Because it is," Rayyan said.
"Noora."
Malik leaned back, cracking his knuckles.
"Love is a weakness we can't afford right now."
"Either he steps away from her — or we all die together."
Faisal stood alone on the balcony, the city lights below flickering like dying stars. Behind him, Noora lay curled on their bed, asleep, her hand resting protectively on her belly.
The phone in his hand buzzed — Rayyan's encrypted call.
"We need you, brother," Rayyan's voice was steady but urgent.
"The next move depends on you. No one else can see what you see."
"You know what's at stake."
Faisal didn't reply. His eyes stayed on the horizon, but his mind was a warzone.
"I'll be there," Faisal finally said.
"But not for long."
"What do you mean?" Rayyan asked, tension thickening.
"I'll help finish this war," Faisal said.
"But after that… I'm out."
"Noora's right. I can't raise my son in a graveyard."
Rayyan's silence was heavy.
"We started this together," Rayyan said softly.
"We finish it together."
"We will," Faisal promised.
"One last time."
The next day, Faisal stood with his brothers, their faces hardened, their bond unbreakable — but this time, the shadow of finality hung between them.
"Our target isn't just a man," Faisal said, pointing to the screen.
"He's the voice that whispers in every President's ear."
"He's the man who ordered Daniel to kill my family."
"He's the one who gave the green light for every war we ever fought."
"His name — Adrian Velasco."
Malik's fist slammed into the table.
"We end him. No games. No messages. Just blood."
"Agreed," Ameer said, for once without hesitation.
"This time, we leave nothing standing."
Rayyan's eyes met Faisal's.
"And after that?"
Faisal's smile was faint, but for the first time, there was something soft in it.
"After that, I go home."
That night, Faisal returned to Noora.
He didn't promise her a perfect future.
He didn't lie about the danger still coming.
He only knelt beside her, rested his head gently against her belly, and whispered to their unborn child.
"I don't know what kind of world you'll be born into," Faisal said softly.
"But I promise you this — your father will be there."
"No matter what it costs me."
Noora ran her fingers through his hair, silent tears falling.
"Come back to us," she whispered.
"Always," Faisal promised.
The next morning, he left — for war.
But this time, he wasn't just fighting for revenge.
He was fighting for the only future he wanted.
The future of his family.
And the world was about to feel the fury of a man who had nothing left to lose.