Ashes of Our Flame
Episode 15: "Bloodlines"
Ronan's voice echoed through the speaker, low and unreadable. "You sure you want the truth, firefly? Most people don't survive it."
Nova leaned against the cold wall of her apartment, blood still drying on her sleeve. Her heart thudded loud enough to drown out reason. "I'm done with lies."
A pause.
Then: "Meet me. Warehouse 9. Come alone."
The line went dead.
---
Warehouse 9 stood on the edge of Blackridge's industrial ruins, surrounded by rusted fences and fog that hugged the earth like a secret. Nova arrived at dawn. Pale light cut through broken windows. Inside, dust swirled like ghosts.
Ronan waited at the center.
His coat billowed as he turned. "Nice of you to come bleeding."
She didn't reply.
Just walked straight up to him and tossed the burner phone.
"You gave me this so I'd trust you. Then I find a video of Adrian planning my execution. Which side are you on, Vane?"
He caught the phone mid-air.
"I'm on the side that wants to see The Crow fall."
"And Adrian?"
His jaw tightened.
"That's what we're here to talk about."
---
They sat across from each other on crates, moonlight slicing through the dark like a blade.
"I didn't lie about who I am," Ronan began. "I did die—on paper. My unit was ambushed five years ago. Only I crawled out. But I didn't go back. You don't crawl back from a place like that. You burn the file and disappear."
Nova's voice was low. "Why tell me this?"
"Because your past is burned too. We're not so different."
She stayed silent.
He pulled a worn envelope from his coat. Slid it to her.
Nova opened it with careful fingers.
A photo.
Her father.
And Marcus Vale.
Laughing.
Arms around each other.
Below it, a memo. Top secret. Marked with her father's name. And a betrayal.
"Your dad didn't just work for Marcus," Ronan said quietly. "They built the network together. Blackridge, Vale City, the east port line—he was the brains. Marcus was the fist."
Nova's world tilted.
She stared at the paper.
"This can't be right. My father… he tried to expose Vale."
Ronan's eyes didn't waver. "He turned on Marcus, yes. But not out of guilt. He wanted to take it all for himself. When Marcus found out—he did what men like him do."
Her breath caught.
"He framed him," she whispered.
"No," Ronan said. "He killed him. And made you believe it was an accident. Then wiped your mother out of the records. Erased your entire family like they were nothing."
Nova stood suddenly. The ache in her chest was unbearable.
"But why would Adrian—?"
Ronan stood too. "Because Adrian Vale doesn't know the whole story. He thinks you're dead, Nova. He thinks you were just collateral damage."
Nova's hands shook.
Ronan stepped closer.
"Don't go to him yet. Not until you know what side of the line he's on."
She stared at him.
Torn in half.
---
Later that night, Nova sat alone in her apartment, the photo of her father burning a hole in her mind.
The walls closed in. Her vision blurred. Her breath grew shallow.
Panic.
She dropped to the floor, fingers digging into the hardwood, trying to anchor herself.
Her mind screamed.
They lied.
They all lied.
Tessa called.
She didn't answer.
---
Meanwhile, in Vale Tower…
Adrian paced his office like a caged animal. The storm outside mirrored the one in his chest.
"Still no sign of her?" he barked into the phone.
Talon's voice came through. "She was spotted near The Crow's warehouse. Then vanished again."
Adrian cursed under his breath. "What the hell is she doing?"
"Getting too close to things that can't be unlearned."
"I should've told her the truth."
"You mean, the part where your father ordered her family's death?"
Adrian turned slowly. "Don't push me."
Talon sighed. "Look. I'm on your side. But she deserves the truth. And if she learns it from anyone but you…"
"I know," Adrian muttered. "I'm already losing her."
---
Three hours later, a knock sounded at Nova's door.
She didn't move.
Another knock.
Then: "Nova, it's me."
Adrian.
Her heart stalled.
She rose slowly, every step toward the door heavy with grief and fury.
When she opened it, their eyes locked.
Adrian looked like he hadn't slept in days. Hair messy. Eyes haunted.
"You shouldn't be here," she said softly.
"I had to see you."
They stood in silence.
Then she stepped aside.
---
He walked in. Paused.
"What happened to your arm?"
"Crow's men."
He turned to her sharply. "You went to him?"
"I had questions. He had answers."
Adrian tensed. "And what did he tell you?"
She pulled the photo from her pocket and threw it on the table.
"Recognize this?"
Adrian picked it up.
His face paled.
"Where did you get this?"
"You tell me, Adrian. Was your father and my father working together? Did you know about this?"
"I—" He sat down hard. "I didn't. I swear."
"But you knew about my family. About what happened to them."
"Yes," he whispered. "Not all of it. Just that my father ordered something… and then you were gone."
Tears welled in her eyes. "And you still kissed me?"
"I loved you before I knew."
"Liar," she snapped.
He stood. "No. I loved you the second you looked me in the eye and didn't flinch. When you laughed at me instead of chasing me. When you challenged everything I thought I knew."
Nova swallowed hard.
"You don't get to rewrite our story."
"I'm not trying to," he said, stepping closer. "I'm trying to stop it from ending."
She turned away.
"Don't you see?" he said quietly. "They broke us before we even began."
She whispered, "Maybe we were never supposed to begin."
He gently touched her shoulder. "But we did."
---
That night, neither of them slept.
They sat on the couch, side by side, the silence between them louder th
an any scream.
He didn't kiss her.
She didn't cry.
But when morning came, they were still there.
Together.
Wounded.
Uncertain.
But together.
---
To be continued in Episode 16…
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