The wind reeked of brine and rust as Sienna crept through the cargo maze. Towering shipping containers loomed like silent tombstones, painted with peeling logos and cryptic codes.
The USB in her coat pocket felt radioactive—its encrypted files humming with everything the Lancasters had tried to bury.
"Come alone. Tell no one."—K.
She moved with purpose, boots muffled on the damp gravel. The night was heavy, too still. No gulls, no foghorns. Just the distant echo of water slapping against rusted hulls.
Her pulse ticked faster.She was being watched.
Then—
A shape shifted from the shadows.
Too tall. Too clean. Too late.
He stepped forward, crisp shoes catching moonlight. A black wool coat. A silk scarf. A face she'd only seen once in an old family portrait.
Adrian Lancaster.
Silas's estranged uncle. The prodigal snake.
"You're not K," Sienna said flatly.
"No," Adrian said, voice like chilled bourbon. "But I'm honored you thought he'd still show. I hear you've been asking about Veritas."
Her fingers found the silver hairpin in her sleeve—a comfort, a threat.
"And I hear," she said slowly, "you've been selling it to the highest bidder. Black market weapons trials. Civilians caught in the crossfire. Sound familiar?"
Adrian's expression didn't flicker.
But his hand moved.
Gunmetal flashed.
"Smart girl."He raised the pistol."Pity you'll die like your teacher—"
CRACK.
A single shot sliced the night.
Adrian's chest blossomed red.He staggered, breath catching in a wet gasp.Then crumpled.
Blood pooled beneath him, steaming in the cold.
Sienna didn't flinch.Her eyes snapped upward.
Across the shipping crates, silhouetted by the pale glow of floodlights, stood a lean figure with a scoped rifle. Black mask. Black coat. No insignia.
K.
He gave her a brief nod—more warning than farewell—then melted into the shadows without a sound.
Sienna crouched beside Adrian's body.
His eyes were wide, confused. His lips moved without breath. She leaned closer.
"You weren't the player," she whispered, voice hard as glass. "You were just the piece."
Then she rose, turned her coat against the wind, and disappeared into the maze—leaving behind blood, metal, and a third player gone cold.