The rain started again as Emma and Darrick left her family home, but neither noticed.
Emma walked fast, her steps sharp with purpose, her jaw tight.
Darrick stayed close, keeping pace.
Her brothers now knew the danger.
Victor Kane's shadow hung over everything.
But Emma wasn't breaking.
She was sharpening.
---
••• Adrian's Warning
As soon as they arrived back at the lodge, Adrian was waiting—jaw tight, sleeves rolled, eyes colder than usual.
"We have a problem," he said.
Emma felt her pulse spike. "What happened?"
Adrian tossed a small metal device onto the table.
A tracker.
Military-grade.
Still blinking red.
Emma's eyes narrowed. "Where did you find that?"
"Under the car bumper," Adrian said. "Meaning someone already knows where we are."
Darrick swallowed hard.
"Victor?"
"Not just Victor," Adrian replied.
He tapped a few keys on his laptop. A holographic map flickered to life, showing five red dots closing in.
Emma's eyes hardened.
"Syndicate operatives."
Darrick stared. "What's the Syndicate?"
Adrian hesitated, then said the words Emma knew too well:
"Victor's private ghost-army. Assassins from every corner of the world. No names. No mercy. No survivors."
Darrick's face paled.
"And they're coming here," Adrian added.
Emma's fists clenched.
"So we fight."
Adrian shook his head sharply. "No. We leave. These guys are on another level—"
"So am I," Emma snapped.
Adrian stared at her for a long moment.
"…Emma. This is exactly what Victor wants. He's forcing you to fight on his terms."
Emma grabbed her gun and holstered it.
"Then I'll rewrite the terms."
But before Adrian could argue again, the power went out.
Darkness swallowed the lodge.
The only light left was the blinking red tracker on the table.
Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
Darrick whispered, "They're already here…"
---
••• The Start of the Hunt
A laser dot slid across the wall.
Emma shoved Darrick down.
Glass shattered.
A bullet tore through the room—silent, precise, deadly.
"MOVE!" she barked.
They scattered.
Emma flipped the table, shielding Darrick.
Adrian rolled behind the couch, pulling out twin pistols.
Shadows moved outside the windows—silent figures in tactical suits.
The Syndicate had arrived.
Emma signaled Adrian. "Cover fire. I'm taking the left flank."
He nodded. "Don't die, boss."
Emma kicked open the back door and disappeared into the night.
---
••• In the Forest: Hunter vs. Hunter
The woods were cold, wet, and pitch-black.
Perfect for killers.
Emma sprinted between trees, her senses razor-sharp.
She detected footsteps behind her—too light to be military, too coordinated to be amateurs.
A Syndicate scout.
She ducked behind a trunk.
Held her breath.
Listened.
Three… two… one—
She exploded forward, slamming her elbow into the scout's throat.
He staggered.
She twisted, drove her knee into his ribs, then used his own knife to knock him out cold.
"One down," she whispered.
A gun clicked behind her.
"Two down," a voice replied.
Emma spun and kicked the weapon away, sweeping the attacker's legs.
He recovered instantly—strong, fast, skilled.
Syndicate elite.
Their fists clashed.
Kicks, strikes, blocks—each movement precise, trained, deadly.
He went for her throat.
She caught his arm, twisted, and dropped him with a chokehold.
He went limp.
Emma stood over him, chest rising and falling.
"That all you've got?" she muttered.
But then she heard it—
Slow clapping.
She stiffened.
A tall figure stepped from the shadows, face hidden behind a reinforced mask.
Unlike the others, he didn't rush her.
He bowed.
"Emma Hellsing," he said, voice calm and deep.
"The boss sends his regards."
She glared. "Tell Victor I'm coming for him."
The masked assassin tilted his head, amused.
"Oh… he knows. That's why he sent me."
He drew two black blades.
Emma's grip tightened.
Her heart pounded—not from fear, but anticipation.
This wasn't a scout.
This wasn't a soldier.
This was one of Victor Kane's top killers.
A Syndicate Captain.
---
••• Back at the Lodge
While Emma faced her own battlefield, Darrick scrambled to help Adrian barricade the doors.
Adrian fired through the windows, taking down two more Syndicate members with terrifying efficiency.
Darrick grabbed the tracker device.
"If I throw this far enough… maybe I can mislead them."
"Are you insane?" Adrian hissed.
"Probably," Darrick said, flinging it out the back window as far as he could.
The beeping faded into the distance.
Adrian blinked.
"…Okay. That was actually smart."
Then the door shook violently.
Someone was trying to break it down.
Adrian chambered a round.
"Let them try."
---
••• Final Lines
Back in the forest, the masked captain rushed Emma with inhuman speed.
Emma met him head-on.
Blades clashed.
Sparks flew.
The forest trembled with the violence of their fight.
He was stronger.
Faster.
Precise.
But Emma was furious.
Driven.
Unstoppable.
This fight wasn't just about survival anymore.
It was about answers.
About her parents.
About Victor's lies.
About ending everything he started.
The captain lunged—
Emma dodged—
And their duel vanished deeper into the dark forest.
The Syndicate had made the first move.
Emma was ready to make the last.