The wind howled along the cliffs of Thornwick, rattling old gutters and hurling sea spray against the stone cottage where the Credo family had lived for generations. Inside, the warm glow of a fireplace painted flickers across the wooden walls. The scent of roasted lamb, garlic, and fresh bread wrapped the home in comfort.
Ashley Credo, only eight years old, sat cross-legged beneath the dining table, a half-built toy robot in his hands. His fingers worked silently, turning bolts, adjusting joints. He didn't need instructions. He never did.
Up above, laughter echoed as Celeste Credo poured wine into thick crystal glasses. Her long dark hair was tied loosely, strands escaping around her face. There was warmth in her eyes-but shadows, too. The kind that don't leave with time.
Beside her sat Marcus, her husband-broad-shouldered, oil-stained from a long shift at the shipyard. The girls, Luna and Elara, argued playfully about who got the last roll. Luna was already poking around in her mom's old laptops. Elara, meanwhile, was watching Ashley beneath the table with quiet interest.
"Still building your army under there?" she asked.
Ashley glanced up with a sly grin. "I'm giving him legs this time. Last one fell over."
"Well, maybe don't make him top-heavy next time, nerd," Luna quipped, popping a grape into her mouth.
"Language," Marcus muttered.
Celeste chuckled-but her eyes drifted to the window. The wind had shifted.
Suddenly, the low buzz of an encrypted comm link pinged from her purse in the corner.
She froze.
Not here. Not now.
Her hand trembled slightly as she reached for the device. She excused herself, stepping into the pantry and sliding the door shut. The screen lit up green.
> INCOMING CALL: HELIX-7
AUTH LEVEL: BLACK SIGMA
Her breath caught. That name was buried, locked away in a past she'd sworn to forget.
She answered.
"Celeste," came a voice-calm, cold, British. "You've been quiet. Too quiet."
"I told you I was done," she said sharply, voice low. "They don't know. My family doesn't know. And I'd like to keep it that way."
"The world doesn't stop turning because you got sentimental," the voice replied. "Project LUX-09 wasn't just yours, Celeste. We've detected activity in the old archives. Someone accessed your work. From this region."
Celeste's stomach twisted. "That's impossible. I destroyed all of it."
"Did you?" the voice said. "You always were a poor liar."
She cut the connection.
Outside the pantry, life carried on. Elara danced with a stuffed rabbit. Marcus raised a toast. Luna rolled her eyes and hacked a school server just for fun. Ashley sat quietly, his hands resting on the robot, which now gleamed faintly in the dim light-its metal core humming, warm to the touch.
Celeste rejoined them with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.
"Everything alright?" Marcus asked.
"Just some old ghosts," she said, kissing his cheek.
They didn't notice her hand brush across Ashley's back as she passed-the way her fingers paused, as if... sensing something. As if... recognizing a change in her son's skin. A slight warmth. A strange vibration.
Ashley looked up at her.
"Mom?"
She blinked.
"Hmm?"
"Your hand's shaking."
She pulled away. "Just tired, love."
But she wasn't tired.
She was terrified.
---
End of Chapter
By Luinyi Ashley