Last chapter :"Fine. Just this once."

  Their fingers clasped.

  Game on.

  -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  The sound of heavy boots pounded against the marble floors, echoing behind them. Armed guards were closing in—too fast. One wrong move, and they’d be riddled with bullets.

  Sia’s eyes darted around, assessing their options. They were cornered. No time. No way out. Then her gaze landed on Eli below, furiously hacking into the security system, fingers flying over the keyboard in a blur of motion.

  Without hesitation, she pulled the necklace from her wrist and hurled it down toward him. “Eli! Catch the freaking thing!” she barked.

  Ian scoffed beside her, his voice dripping with mockery. “Oh dear, and here I thought you were far too dignified to use such words.”

  She shot him a glare, but before she could respond, Ian grabbed her by the waist and yanked her back. Then, without warning—

  He jumped.

  Sia barely had time to process before they were tumbling through the air, the wind whipping past them as they plummeted toward the ground. The impact came hard—grass and dirt cushioning their fall as they rolled, bodies twisting against each other before finally coming to a halt.

  Above them, the guards skidded to the edge of the balcony. For a second, there was silence.

  Then—recognition.

  Shouts rang out.

  Gunfire exploded.

  Viv’s frantic voice came through. “GUYS, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?! FIND ANOTHER WAY OUT!”

  “NO TIME.” Eli shouted back. “I’M STILL ERA—HEY! STOP THAT!”

  Sia glanced at her watch, breath short. “What’s going on?”

  Eli growled. “Your damn necklace! Viv is trying to take it from me!”

  Over the comms, they could hear Eli and Viv actually fighting.

  “Give me the necklace, Mercer.” Viv’s voice was cold.

  “Like hell I will, Cross!”

  Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  Sia’s heart skipped. “Ian, what’s going on?”

  But Ian? Ian was calm. Too calm.

  “Viv,” he said smoothly, “No need. Let them have it.”

  There was silence. Then—

  Viv instantly backed off. “Yes, boss.”

  Eli froze, suspicion lacing his voice. “… What?”

  --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  Guns fired all around them.

  Sia barely flinched as she twisted, pulling her pistols from their holsters in one smooth motion. She took aim. Fired. One by one, the guards dropped. Headshots. Precise.

  Ian was no less efficient. He had his own gun in hand, taking down targets with effortless accuracy, his expression cold, detached. Calculated.

  But there were too many.

  Bullets ran out fast.

  Sia gritted her teeth, slipping another clip from her belt—empty. Ian glanced at her from the corner of his eye, the ghost of a smirk playing at his lips.

  “Running dry, Royce?”

  She huffed, flipping a knife between her fingers before tossing it his way. “Try not to drop it, Adler.”

  He caught it with ease, twirling it between his fingers while smirking. “How selfless. Didn’t know you cared.”

  “Shut the hell up, Adler.”

  “Make me.” His voice was smooth, teasing, eyes gleaming with mischief even as he lunged forward, driving the blade into an approaching guard’s throat.

  Sia barely reacted, too busy driving her own knife into another attacker’s gut before twisting, using his body as a shield against another round of bullets.

  But then—

  Ian’s chuckle. Low. Amused.

  “Oh, or will Elias be so jealous that HIS girlfriend kissed ME?”

  Sia froze mid-movement. “HUH!?”

  A distraction.

  A fist came flying her way. She barely dodged in time, the blow grazing her cheek. Instinct took over. She grabbed the attacker’s wrist, twisting it until he screamed, then kicked his legs out from under him. He hit the ground with a thud, unconscious.

  Ian whistled. “That’s adorable. You actually let that distract you.”

  She shot him a withering glare. “We are in the middle of a fight, you absolute—”

  “Less talking, more running, sweetheart,” Ian interrupted smoothly.

  And then they were moving again. Sprinting toward the perimeter, dodging bullets as they vaulted over the tall iron fence.

  Behind them—

  The estate behind them exploded in a brilliant inferno.

  Sia flinched. “What the hell?!”

  Ian exhaled, watching the flames. “Isn’t it beautiful?” His voice was almost wistful. Then he looked at her, smirking. “One day, Royce, you’ll burn just like that too.”

  She scoffed. “If I go to hell, I’m taking you with me.”

  He chuckled, stepping closer. "Isn’t seeing your face during most of my missions already hell?"

  She smirked "Admit it, Adler. I make things more fun."

  Ian hummed, tilting his head. “Careful, Royce. Sounds like you’re falling for me.”

  "If I had a dollar for every time you pretended to hate me, I’d be richer than SPECTER."

  Sia flashed a slow, dangerous grin. "Flirting won’t get you the necklace, Adler, but I admire the effort."

  Ian’s laughter rumbled low, dark—the kind that sent shivers down spines. Behind him, the estate crackled and burned, embers catching in the wind like fireflies from hell. His eyes gleamed, wicked and amused.

  He tilted his head, voice dripping with mockery. "Flirting mid-fight? Of course. Priorities, Royce."

  -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  Meanwhile, outside—

  Eli’s fingers clenched around the necklace. His voice was strained as he whispered into his comm, “Sia, something’s wrong. Seems like Damian doesn’t need the necklace anymore.

  Sia?

  Sia?

  SIA?—OH GOD, NOT AGAIN!!”

  But all he heard was static.

  And that’s when he knew—

  Something had gone horribly, horribly wrong.

  "Well... that escalated quickly. ???? Who needs romance when you can have bullets, explosions, and flirting in the middle of a fight? ????

  necklace mystery? Comment your theories below!

  Eli’s reaction at the end??? ?? Let’s hear it—Team Eli, Team Ian, or Team ‘Sia deserves peace’?"