The safe lodge was quiet when Emma rose before dawn.
She'd barely slept—every time she closed her eyes, she saw the drone's laser, the cabin exploding, Victor's cold smile.
But today wasn't about Victor.
Today was about family.
James.
Sam.
Her brothers.
They didn't know how close danger had come.
Emma strapped her knives to her boots and waist, holstered her gun, and grabbed her jacket.
Darrick stirred awake on the worn couch.
"Emma… where are you going?"
"To check on my brothers," she said, trying not to sound worried.
"They're alone. And after last night, I'm not taking chances."
"I'm coming with you," he said immediately.
Emma shook her head. "No. You stay. Adrian needs you."
And I need you safe, she didn't say.
Darrick stood up, blocking the door.
"I'm not letting you go alone. Not after everything that just happened."
Emma hesitated.
His voice wasn't demanding.
It wasn't pride.
It was fear. For her.
She sighed. "Fine. But stay behind me at all times."
Darrick nodded. "Deal."
Adrian appeared from the shadows, already armed.
"I'll guard the lodge and handle surveillance. If Victor makes a move, I'll call."
Emma stared at him. "If Victor shows up—don't try to fight him alone."
"I won't," Adrian said.
But his eyes told her he was lying.
---
•••
Emma's family home was small, in a crowded district on the city's edge—the kind of place where people kept their heads down and didn't ask questions.
Emma pushed the door open quietly.
The smell of tea.
Books.
A wheelchair.
James looked up first.
"Emma?" he said, relief washing over his tired face. "Sam, your sister is home."
Sam ran from the kitchen, almost slipping on the tiles.
"Emma! You're okay!"
She dropped to one knee, hugging both tightly.
For a moment, she wasn't a fighter.
She wasn't a killer.
She was just… their sister.
James pulled back, eyes scanning her bruises.
"You've been fighting again."
"It's nothing," Emma said.
"Nothing looks like you fought ten men and a machine gun," James muttered.
Darrick stepped inside quietly.
James stiffened.
Sam's eyes widened.
"Who's he?" Sam asked.
"A friend," Emma said.
Darrick blinked, startled.
Emma almost never used that word.
James studied Darrick carefully.
"Friend, huh? Rich friend?"
Darrick scratched his head awkwardly.
"I… suppose?"
Emma rolled her eyes. "Can we not interrogate him?"
James wheeled closer.
"Emma, you need to hear something."
Her stomach tightened.
"What happened?"
James pointed to a sealed envelope on the table.
"I got a message about our parents," he said quietly.
"A new name. Someone connected to their death."
Emma froze.
Her heartbeat thundered in her ears.
And then James whispered a name she hadn't heard in years—
"Kane."
Darrick felt the air shift around Emma instantly.
Her fists clenched.
Her breathing sharpened.
James continued, "I think Victor Kane is not just after you… I think he was connected to our parents' murder."
Emma took a slow step back.
"No. That's impossible."
James shook his head.
"Emma… I found documents. Money trails. Fake accounts. Someone paid predators to silence anyone investigating Mom and Dad. That someone was linked to Victor's old network."
Emma's world tilted.
Victor Kane wasn't just after Darrick.
He wasn't just trying to kill her.
He might have been the man responsible for destroying her family.
Darrick placed a hand on her shoulder gently.
"Emma… we'll figure this out."
Her voice cracked—not from fear, but fury.
"He killed my parents… he put James in this chair… he made us orphans."
Sam clenched his fists, trembling.
"Emma… you're not going after him alone, right?"
Emma shook her head slowly.
"No," she whispered.
"Not this time."
She turned to Darrick.
"Victor Kane isn't just your enemy now."
Her eyes burned like fire.
"He's mine. And I'm going to tear his world apart."
Darrick stepped closer, his voice low, steady.
"Then I'll be right beside you."
For the first time in years, Emma didn't push someone away.
She let him stay.
Because this fight wasn't just about survival anymore.
It was about justice.
Revenge.
Family.
And the truth buried in blood.
---