The cabin door rattled under the force of the knock, each sharp rap echoing in my ears. My fingers tightened around the gun beneath my jacket, my body coiled, every nerve on edge. Across the room, Kaleel didn't flinch, but his eyes flickered - something sharp and unreadable, anticipation or calculation. I couldn't tell.

Jean's voice came muffled through the wood. "Kar, we have a problem."

Kaleel moved first, his body fluid like a predator as he stepped toward the door. I grabbed his wrist before he could reach the handle, my grip firm. His pulse was steady under my fingers, unfazed.

"We open that door without knowing who's on the other side, and we're dead," I murmured, locking eyes with him.

His brow arched. "Trust issues, Red?"

"Survival instincts," I shot back. Then, louder, "Jean, what do you see?"

A pause. Then, "Two men. Dressed like agency, but something's off. They're not supposed to be here."

I met Kaleel's gaze, and he exhaled sharply before drawing a knife from his belt. "We take them quietly."

I nodded. The air between us thickened, our movements perfectly in sync. I pressed my back to the wall, gun drawn, as Kaleel unlatched the door with a practiced ease. As the gap widened, I caught a glimpse of Jean's stance - tense, ready. And then, the two men flanking him.

No time to think. Just move.

I lunged first, using the element of surprise to slam the nearest man against the cabin's frame, my gun pressing hard under his chin. He grunted, his hand darting to his holster, but I twisted his wrist sharply. His weapon clattered to the floor.

Across from me, Kaleel was a blur of movement. The second man barely had time to react before a knife drove into his side, Kaleel's hand clamping over his mouth to muffle the choked gasp. Jean moved fast, pinning the struggling agent's arms behind his back.

I tightened my grip, my voice steel. "Who sent you?"

The man sneered. "You think you're the only ones playing this game?"

Kaleel stepped forward, wiping his blade clean on the second man's jacket as he slumped, lifeless, to the floor. His voice was eerily calm. "Answer her. Or you'll end up like your friend."

The remaining agent's smirk faltered. He swallowed hard, his eyes flicking to Jean. A glint of amusement returned. "Your girl's good, I'll give her that," he rasped. "But you're already too late."

A cold weight settled in my stomach. I knew that look - the look of a man with nothing left to lose.

"Move!" I barked, shoving him forward just as a sharp *beep* cut through the air.

Kaleel's eyes widened. "Get down!"

The explosion ripped through the boat.

I barely had time to react before the blast sent me flying. The impact slammed me into the wall, knocking the air from my lungs. My ears rang, my vision swam. Heat licked at my skin. Wood splintered. Metal groaned. Smoke swallowed the air in thick, suffocating waves.

Through the chaos, I heard Jean shouting my name. Distant. Muffled.

I tried to move, but my limbs felt like lead. Then, hands - rough, urgent - grabbed my shoulders, hauling me up.

Kaleel. Blood trickled down his temple, but his grip was firm. "We have to move!"

Jean staggered toward us, coughing against the smoke. "They knew we'd come," he rasped.

My mind raced. The evidence - the files, the photos - everything had been inside that cabin. And now, it was ash.

I gritted my teeth. We weren't dead. That meant the game wasn't over yet.

Kaleel pulled me forward, urgency in every step. "We need to get off this dock before - "

A floodlight snapped on, blinding white.

I barely had time to curse before a voice rang out over a loudspeaker.

"This is the agency. Drop your weapons and surrender."

Jean tensed beside me. Kaleel's jaw clenched. And me? I forced a breath through my lungs, steadied my gun.

Because there was no way in hell I was surrendering now.