Rachel couldn't breathe.
The vault was sealed.
The air was cold.
The red emergency lights painted the entire room like it was bleeding.
And standing in front of her like a nightmare made flesh… was Selene.
Selene's silver hair shimmered under the red glow. Her lips were curved in that familiar smile the one that didn't mean happiness, only danger.
Behind her stood armed men.
Professional.
Silent.
And between them…
Raziel.
His hands were tied behind him, his shirt torn, bruises on his face. Blood dried on his jaw.
But his eyes…
His eyes were still alive.
Still sharp.
Still furious.
He looked at Rachel as though he wanted to tear through the chains with his teeth just to reach her.
Rachel's knees weakened.
"Raziel…" her voice cracked.
Raziel's lips parted slightly, but he didn't speak.
Selene pressed the barrel of her gun against his temple.
"Touching," Selene murmured. "Truly. Like a romance novel. Except this one ends in blood."
Rachel's heart pounded violently.
Adrian was still trapped in the metal cuffs on the floor, struggling like an animal.
"SELENE!" he roared. "YOU BITCH! LET ME GO!"
Selene didn't even look at him.
Instead, she stepped closer to Rachel.
Her heels clicked.
Click.
Click.
Click.
Each step felt like the countdown to death.
Selene stopped in front of Rachel and tilted her head.
"Now," Selene said, voice soft like poison. "Open the black book."
Rachel's eyes flickered to the table.
The black book sat there like a sleeping monster.
Her father's weapon.
Her father's secret.
Her father's last move.
Rachel swallowed hard.
"I don't even know what it is," she whispered.
Selene smiled wider.
"Oh, you will," she replied. "And when you do… we will finally see who your blood belongs to."
Rachel clenched her fists.
Isabella stood behind Rachel, her face pale for the first time in her life.
Rachel turned her head slightly.
"Mom…" she whispered, voice trembling. "What is happening?"
Isabella's lips tightened.
She didn't answer.
She didn't even know what to say.
Rachel's heart sank.
Even her mother looked afraid.
That was when Rachel understood.
This wasn't just about money.
This wasn't about mafia power.
This was about something much deeper.
Something that could end nations.
Selene's voice snapped her back.
"Rachel," she warned. "Don't make me repeat myself."
Rachel turned slowly back toward Selene.
Her eyes went to Raziel again.
He looked… tired.
But still strong.
Still dangerous.
Still trying to protect her even in chains.
Then Raziel finally spoke.
His voice was rough.
Low.
But powerful.
"Don't."
Rachel's eyes widened.
Raziel shook his head slightly.
"Don't open it," he said again.
Selene laughed softly.
"Aww," Selene teased. "Look at him trying to be noble."
She pressed the gun harder against Raziel's head.
Rachel's breath hitched.
Selene's eyes locked on Rachel.
"One word," Selene whispered. "And I paint the wall with his brain."
Rachel's body trembled violently.
Her fingers twitched.
She wanted to attack.
She wanted to scream.
But she couldn't.
She couldn't risk him.
Rachel swallowed hard.
"Okay…" she whispered. "Okay, I'll open it."
Raziel's eyes flared.
"Rachel!"
Rachel turned quickly, her eyes pleading.
"I have to," she whispered back. "I can't lose you."
Raziel's jaw tightened.
His gaze softened for a split second.
Then it hardened again.
"Then kill me," he said quietly.
Rachel froze.
"What…?"
Raziel's voice became sharper.
"Kill me before you give them that book."
Rachel's chest felt like it was splitting open.
"Raziel… stop."
Selene chuckled.
"You see?" she said mockingly. "Men are always dramatic."
Rachel stepped toward the table slowly.
Her footsteps echoed in the vault.
Every step felt like she was walking deeper into hell.
She reached the black book.
Her fingers hovered over it.
The leather looked old.
Cracked.
But powerful.
As if it had absorbed every secret ever whispered in the Moretti empire.
Rachel's fingers touched it.
The moment she did…
The vault speakers crackled again.
Alessandro's voice returned.
"Rachel… if you touch this book, it means you've chosen to fight."
Rachel's breath caught.
The recording continued.
"And if you are surrounded… then you must remember one thing."
Selene's smile faded slightly.
Adrian stopped struggling.
Even he listened now.
The voice continued.
"Trust no one."
Rachel's stomach twisted.
Her eyes flickered to Isabella.
Then to Adrian.
Then to Selene.
Then back to Raziel.
Selene stepped forward.
"Enough games," Selene snapped. "Open it."
Rachel's fingers trembled.
She slowly opened the black book.
The pages were thick.
Heavy.
Written in codes.
Names.
Numbers.
Files.
Secrets.
Rachel's eyes scanned the first page.
Then she froze.
Because it wasn't just mafia information.
It was bigger.
Much bigger.
There were names of politicians.
Generals.
International business leaders.
People who controlled the world.
And beside their names were details that made Rachel's blood run cold.
Human trafficking deals.
Illegal arms shipments.
Assassination orders.
Government bribes.
Experimental drug projects.
Rachel's eyes widened in horror.
"What… is this…?"
Selene's eyes lit up like a child seeing candy.
"That," Selene whispered, "is the key to the world."
Adrian laughed darkly.
"Alessandro was smarter than I thought."
Isabella's face turned whiter.
Rachel turned to her mother.
"You knew about this?" Rachel asked.
Isabella's lips parted.
Her voice came out thin.
"I didn't know he went this far…"
Selene leaned in.
"What's on the last page?" she asked.
Rachel blinked.
"The last page?"
Selene's smile returned.
"Yes," she said. "The last page is what I want."
Rachel's fingers trembled as she flipped through the pages.
The deeper she went, the darker it became.
The names became more powerful.
The crimes became more horrifying.
And then…
Rachel reached the final page.
Her eyes widened.
Because the final page wasn't a list.
It was a sentence.
A single sentence written in Alessandro's handwriting.
Rachel read it aloud, voice shaking:
"If Rachel Moretti ever opens this vault, activate Project Seraphim."
Rachel's heart stopped.
Project Seraphim.
She didn't know what it was.
But the word felt… evil.
Selene's smile dropped instantly.
"What?" Selene snapped. "Read it again."
Rachel swallowed.
"Project Seraphim."
Selene's face darkened.
Adrian's expression changed too.
Isabella's eyes widened in pure terror.
"No…" Isabella whispered.
Rachel turned sharply.
"Mom, what is Project Seraphim?!"
Isabella backed away slowly.
Her voice trembled.
"It's… it's not supposed to be real…"
Selene grabbed Rachel violently by the arm.
"Tell me," Selene hissed. "What does it mean?"
Rachel pulled away.
"I don't know!"
Selene raised her gun again.
Straight at Raziel.
"Then I'll kill him until you remember."
Raziel's eyes narrowed.
He looked at Rachel.
And for the first time…
Rachel saw fear in him.
Not fear for himself.
Fear for her.
Selene's finger tightened on the trigger.
Rachel screamed.
"WAIT!"
Selene paused.
Rachel's breath was shaking.
"I… I'll figure it out," she whispered.
Selene leaned closer, voice cold.
"You have ten seconds."
Rachel's mind raced.
She stared at the book again.
She flipped the page.
There was something else.
A hidden page behind the last one.
Rachel's fingers found it.
A folded paper.
She pulled it out.
Her hands shook as she unfolded it.
And her eyes widened.
It was a map.
A map of the vault.
And on the map…
a button was marked.
RED BUTTON – SERAPHIM
Rachel looked around.
And then she saw it.
A small panel hidden behind the table.
A red button.
Rachel's breath caught.
Isabella's eyes widened.
"DON'T TOUCH IT!" Isabella screamed.
Selene smiled slowly.
"Oh, Rachel…" she whispered. "Touch it."
Adrian yelled.
"No! Don't!"
Rachel stared at them all.
Selene wanted her to press it.
Adrian didn't.
Isabella was terrified.
Raziel shook his head violently.
"No, Rachel," he growled. "Don't you dare!"
Rachel's chest rose and fell quickly.
She didn't know who to trust.
But one thing was clear…
They were all afraid of that button.
Which meant…
It was powerful.
Selene stepped closer, her gun still on Raziel.
"Press it," Selene ordered. "Or he dies."
Rachel's eyes filled with tears.
She looked at Raziel.
He stared at her, voice low.
"Rachel… listen to me," he said. "If you press that button… you won't just start a war."
Rachel whispered.
"What will I start?"
Raziel's voice became darker.
"You'll end the world you know."
Rachel trembled.
Selene shouted.
"NOW!"
Rachel's fingers moved.
Slowly.
Shaking.
She reached toward the red button.
Raziel's eyes burned.
His voice broke.
"Rachel… please."
Rachel's hand hovered over the button.
Her lips trembled.
Her voice was barely a whisper.
"I'm sorry…"
And then—
She pressed it.
THE VAULT AWAKENED
The entire vault shook.
Lights exploded brighter.
The floor trembled violently.
Metal gears roared like monsters.
And suddenly…
A mechanical voice filled the room:
"PROJECT SERAPHIM ACTIVATED."
Selene's smile vanished.
Her eyes widened.
Adrian's face twisted in panic.
"No… no no no!"
Isabella screamed.
Rachel's heart hammered.
The walls opened.
Hidden doors slid apart.
And inside…
Rachel saw them.
Rows.
Dozens.
Hundreds.
Of glass pods.
Human-sized pods.
Filled with liquid.
And inside each pod…
was a person.
Sleeping.
Motionless.
Their bodies marked with scars.
Their eyes closed.
But alive.
Rachel's breath left her lungs.
"What… is this…?"
The mechanical voice continued:
"SUBJECTS: SERAPHIM SOLDIERS."
Rachel's eyes widened.
Selene stumbled backward.
Adrian looked like he was about to faint.
Rachel turned slowly…
and her stomach dropped.
Because one of the pods opened with a hiss.
A figure stepped out.
Tall.
Muscular.
Covered in tattoos.
Cold eyes.
Dead expression.
Not human.
Not fully.
The man stepped forward.
Then another pod opened.
Then another.
And another.
Selene's voice cracked.
"What have you done?!"
Rachel couldn't speak.
She couldn't move.
Because the soldiers were coming out.
One by one.
Like demons waking from hell.
Then the mechanical voice spoke again:
"PRIMARY TARGET IDENTIFIED."
Rachel swallowed.
"Target…?"
A red light scanned the room.
And then—
It locked on Raziel.
A robotic beep echoed.
"TARGET: RAZIEL KANE."
Rachel's eyes widened in horror.
"No…"
Raziel's eyes widened too.
Selene's face twisted into a smile again.
"Oh," she whispered. "This is beautiful."
The Seraphim soldier turned toward Raziel.
And in one swift movement…
he pulled out a blade.
Rachel screamed.
"STOP!"
But it was too late.
The soldier lunged.
Straight for Raziel's throat.
Raziel twisted, trying to fight, but his hands were still tied.
Rachel's heart stopped.
Blood sprayed
But it wasn't Raziel's.
Because Raziel had moved just in time.
The blade sliced across his shoulder instead.
Raziel roared in pain.
Rachel screamed again.
Selene raised her gun and fired at the soldier.
But the bullet hit his chest…
and he didn't even flinch.
He kept moving.
Like a machine.
Rachel turned to Isabella.
"You knew!" she screamed. "YOU KNEW THIS WAS HERE!"
Isabella was shaking.
Her eyes full of regret.
"It was Alessandro's final defense…" she whispered. "His ultimate army."
Rachel's voice cracked.
"He built monsters…"
Selene laughed bitterly.
"Monsters?" she repeated. "No, darling… he built angels of death."
Raziel struggled violently.
He tried to fight the soldier with his legs.
But another Seraphim soldier grabbed him from behind.
Raziel roared.
Rachel ran forward.
But Selene grabbed her hair and yanked her back.
Rachel screamed in pain.
Selene whispered in her ear:
"Now you'll watch him die."
Rachel's eyes filled with tears.
She fought Selene's grip, but Selene was strong.
Adrian yelled at his guards.
"SHOOT THEM!"
The guards fired.
Bullets hit the Seraphim soldiers.
But the soldiers kept walking.
Like bullets were nothing.
One of the Seraphim soldiers snapped a guard's neck with one hand.
CRACK.
The sound echoed.
Rachel screamed.
The vault became chaos.
Blood.
Screams.
Gunfire.
Selene's men dying.
Adrian's men dying.
The Seraphim soldiers killing everyone.
And in the middle of it all…
Raziel.
Being dragged toward the deepest part of the vault.
Rachel screamed his name.
"RAZIEL!"
Raziel's eyes locked on hers.
His voice was hoarse.
"RUN!"
Rachel shook her head violently.
"No!"
Raziel struggled, his voice turning desperate.
"RACHEL! RUN!"
Rachel fought Selene's grip and finally broke free.
She ran toward Raziel.
But a Seraphim soldier stepped in front of her.
Blocking her path.
Rachel froze.
The soldier's eyes were empty.
Cold.
Like death itself.
He raised his hand.
And pointed at her.
Then the mechanical voice spoke again:
"SECONDARY TARGET IDENTIFIED."
Rachel's heart stopped.
The voice continued:
"TARGET: RACHEL MORETTI."
Rachel's blood turned to ice.
Selene screamed.
"NO! SHE'S MINE!"
Adrian shouted.
"She triggered it! Kill her!"
Isabella ran toward Rachel, crying.
"Rachel!"
Rachel stood frozen.
The Seraphim soldier walked closer.
Slow.
Calculated.
Unstoppable.
Rachel backed away.
Her breath shaking.
Then the soldier stopped.
He tilted his head.
And spoke.
A human voice.
Deep.
Familiar.
He looked at Rachel…
and whispered:
"…Rachel?"
Rachel froze.
Her eyes widened.
Because she knew that voice.
Her lips trembled.
"No…"
The soldier stepped closer.
His eyes changed.
Not empty anymore.
Not dead.
But alive.
And he whispered again, voice breaking:
"Rachel… it's me."
Rachel's breath stopped.
Her voice came out like a ghost.
"D…Dad?"