Chapter 4: A Web of Lies
Safehouse – 01:15 Hours
The tension inside the safehouse was thick. The room was dimly lit, a single bulb swaying gently from the ceiling, casting shifting shadows along the cracked walls. The air smelled of old wood and cigarette smoke—a forgotten place, ideal for ghosts like them.
Jasper Hawke stood by the window, his gaze locked onto the street below. He hadn’t spotted a tail, but instinct told him they weren’t out of danger yet. Across the room, Nadia Petrova sat on an old wooden chair, her face illuminated by the glow of a laptop screen.
“Anything?” Hawke asked without turning.
Nadia exhaled sharply. “Nothing yet. Whoever is behind this—they’ve covered their tracks well.”
She’d been combing through an encrypted database, searching for any sign of who had compromised them. The Black Swan attack hadn’t been random. They had been expected.
Hawke’s fingers drummed against the windowsill. “Someone inside your network knew we were coming,” he said. “A leak.”
Nadia looked up. “And it has to be someone high up. This kind of coordination isn’t street-level.”
Hawke finally turned to face her. “Then we start at the top.”
Vienna, Austria – 03:45 Hours
The cold wind howled through the narrow streets, sweeping against the towering facades of Vienna’s old town. The city was sleeping—except for those who operated in the shadows.
Hawke and Nadia moved with precision, cutting through alleyways and deserted streets until they reached a quiet café—closed for the night, but still occupied.
Inside, a man sat alone at a corner booth, his face half-hidden behind a newspaper. He was older, late fifties, with thinning hair and an angular jaw. Viktor Koslov. A high-ranking intelligence officer with ties to multiple agencies.
As Hawke and Nadia entered, Koslov didn’t flinch. He turned the page of his newspaper, as if expecting them.
“Mr. Hawke, Miss Petrova.” He set the paper down and folded his hands. “You’re late.”
Hawke slid into the seat opposite him, Nadia taking position beside him.
“You were expecting us,” Hawke said.
Koslov smiled faintly. “I expect many things. Only some come true.”
Nadia didn’t waste time. “Who sold us out?”
Koslov sighed, leaning back. “Straight to business. You’re both in a difficult position. Your enemies know you’re alive, and they won’t make the same mistake twice.”
Hawke studied him. “Which enemies?”
Koslov gave a small chuckle. “Ah, you assume there is just one. That’s your first mistake.”
Nadia’s patience thinned. “Enough games, Koslov. Who?”
The older man’s expression sobered. “Your name was flagged on a classified channel two days ago, Petrova. Right before your mission to meet Hawke.”
Hawke’s muscles tensed. “Classified by whom?”
Koslov exhaled. “Your own people, Nadia.”
Silence.
Nadia didn’t move, but Hawke could see it—the shift in her eyes, the calculation of betrayal sinking in.
“My people wouldn’t do that,” she said, but there was a thin edge to her voice.
Koslov slid a small flash drive across the table. “Your people already did. That drive has the encrypted order logs. If you want answers, start there.”
Hawke picked it up. “Why are you helping us?”
Koslov gave him a knowing look. “Because I know what’s coming, Mr. Hawke. And I prefer to stay on the winning side.”
Before either of them could respond, the café’s front door swung open. A gust of wind rushed inside—and with it, two men in dark coats.
Koslov’s face paled. “Move. Now.”
The Chase – 04:00 Hours
The first gunshot shattered the café’s window.
Hawke flipped the table, using it as cover as he grabbed Nadia’s wrist. “Out the back!”
Koslov reached for his weapon, but the assassins were too fast. Two suppressed shots. Koslov slumped forward, dead.
Hawke and Nadia bolted for the kitchen, dodging another round of fire.
They crashed through the back door, sprinting down a narrow alley. The sharp sound of footsteps echoed behind them—their pursuers were fast.
Hawke spotted an old delivery truck parked by a loading dock. Unattended. Unlocked.
“In!” He yanked the door open, shoving Nadia inside before climbing in himself.
The engine roared to life just as bullets sprayed across the windshield. Hawke slammed the gas, tires screeching against the pavement as they sped away.
Behind them, the assassins vanished into the night.
A New Target – 04:20 Hours
Inside the truck, Nadia inserted Koslov’s flash drive into her laptop. Lines of encrypted text filled the screen.
“Got it.” She worked quickly, fingers flying over the keyboard. “It’s a set of classified orders—issued under my name.”
Hawke glanced at her. “Someone inside your agency wanted you compromised.”
Nadia’s jaw tightened. “And now, we find out who.”
The laptop screen blinked, revealing an authorizing signature. A name.
Nadia’s face darkened.
Hawke read the name aloud.
“Anton Gregorov.”
A name tied to intelligence agencies, assassinations, and high-level betrayals.
A name that meant one thing.
This mission just got personal.
