Page 149 of Shadowed Hearts: Frost
"Everything." My fingers work across my tablet screen, following digital breadcrumbs. "Transaction logs, communication intercepts, personnel files. They've created a complete mirror of Tatiana's operation."
I pause, staring at the data. "But look at this. They're not just watching, they're collecting weaknesses, gathering tactical information. Like they're assembling intelligence files."
Cole whistles softly. "That's either quality control or someone building leverage."
"Or reconnaissance," I whisper, pieces clicking together. "Someone with this level of technical sophistication, these resources—they're not working for Tatiana. They're studying the whole network."
Kade studies my tablet over my shoulder. "Can we trace them?"
"Not directly. But these access patterns give us a timeline to work with." I pull up the data logs. "They've been watching for months, maybe longer."
The truth hangs heavy in the surrounding air. We're not just dealing with Tatiana's trafficking network—there's someone else in the shadows, watching, collecting intelligence on everyone involved.
"Jax, investigate the racing angle." Kade's command voice fills the room. "Your background makes you the logical choice."
"Already on it," Jax agrees, but tension still radiates from his frame. "I've got contacts who can get me in."
Kade turns away from the interrogation windows, his attention shifting to our team. The clinical atmosphere of watching prisoners makes everything feel colder, more detached.
The air in the room shifts. I catch Cole's slight frown, the way Jax stops moving entirely.
"The recent attack highlighted operational vulnerabilities," Kade continues, his massive frame somehow making the observation room feel smaller. "Personal attachments create tactical weaknesses. Targeting risks."
"We need to transition Ms. Reyes back to remote consultation effective immediately."
I look desperately at Asher, waiting for him to object, to clarify, to show some crack in that perfectly neutral facade.
He stares through the one-way glass like the empty interrogation chair contains state secrets.
"Your technical expertise has been valuable," Kade adds, almost kindly. "But field operations require different considerations now."
The noise in my head goes silent.
They're cutting me loose. And Asher agrees.
"I understand." The words come out steadier than I feel, though my chest feels like it's caving in.
I stand on legs that feel like they might buckle, tablet pressed against my chest like armor. The observation room's fluorescent lights buzz overhead, that frequency only I seem to notice, now amplified into a dental-drill whine that makes my teeth ache.
"I'll pack my things."
Each step toward the door echoes off the concrete walls. Part of me waits for Asher's voice, for him to defend what we have, to explain that this is just tactics, just protection.
The silence follows me out like a funeral dirge.
I make it to the elevator before the tears start.
thirty-nine
Asher
The elevator doors close behind Vanessa with a sound that echoes through my chest like artillery fire. The observation room falls into the kind of silence that precedes explosions.
Kade turns back to the interrogation windows, apparently satisfied with his tactical assessment. "Now we can proceed without—"
"No."
The word cuts through the air like a blade. Everyone freezes. Even Damian shifts forward from his corner, gray eyes sharp with interest.
