The Room That Waited

The fire spread fast. Smoke curled through the monastery, licking at the stone walls, swallowing the corridors in thick waves of gray. Leanna coughed as she ducked behind the crumbling archway, blinking past the stinging haze.

Jessica was gone. She had seen it happen. One second, Jess was standing there, gun raised, unwavering. The next, Mr. Black moved, too fast, too precise. Jessica collapsed.

Leanna had started forward, instinct taking over, but Olivia had grabbed her arm, yanking her back.

“No, we can’t” Olivia had started, but Leanna barely heard her over the rush of blood in her ears.

Because Jessica was being dragged away. Because she was losing her. Because this wasn’t how it was supposed to go. She gritted her teeth, her fingers twitching over the grip of her gun. This wasn’t the first time someone had tried to take Jess.

But this was different. Because this time, Jess had remembered. And now, the people who had been waiting for this moment. The ones who had always come for her had her.

The fire crackled behind them, eating through centuries of history, through the weight of the past Jessica had spent so long trying to unravel.

Olivia exhaled sharply, her expression somewhere between fury and cold calculation, “We have to go.”

Leanna didn’t move. Her jaw was tight, her entire body coiled with tension. She could still see Jess on the ground, see Mr. Black standing over her like he had been waiting for this. Like he had known this was always how it would end.

Leanna exhaled sharply. “We don’t leave people behind.”

Olivia grabbed her arm. “And we won’t. But if we stay here, we’re dead.”

Leanna clenched her fists. She knew Olivia was right. But knowing didn’t make it easier. Didn’t make the rage settle. Didn’t make the guilt ease.

She swallowed hard, forcing her body to move, forcing her legs to carry her toward the side passage that Olivia had already scoped out. Jessica was gone. But not forever. Not if Leanna had anything to say about it.

* * *

Jessica woke slowly.

Her body was sluggish, her limbs heavy, like she had been pulled out of deep water. The air was cold. Sterile. The first thing she registered was the restraints.Her wrists. Her ankles. Strapped down. Not tightly. Not in a way that would leave marks, but securely enough.

She inhaled through her nose, taking in her surroundings before opening her eyes. No sound. No flickering firelight.

She wasn’t in the monastery anymore. She was somewhere else. A controlled environment. A place meant for containment. She opened her eyes.

The room was stark white. A single chair. A single table. A camera in the corner. And across from her, sitting with the same casual ease he had always carried was Mr. Black.

Jessica exhaled slowly, keeping her face blank. “You should be dead.”

Mr. Black smiled faintly. “So should you.”

Jessica flexed her fingers against the restraints. “This is a mistake.”

Mr. Black tilted his head. “I don’t think so.”

Jessica’s pulse was steady, her mind already working through the possibilities. She wasn’t drugged, not fully. She could feel the faint trace of something in her system, but not enough to cloud her thoughts.

They wanted her to be aware. Which meant they wanted something from her. Mr. Black leaned forward slightly, his voice still that same maddening calm, “I warned you,” he said.

Jessica met his gaze. “And I ignored you.”

Mr. Black’s eyes darkened, something sharper flickering beneath his controlled expression.

“Yes,” he said quietly. “You did.”

Jessica exhaled. “So what now? You erase me? Or do I finally get to understand what’s been done to me?”

Mr. Black studied her. “I think you already understand.”

Jessica swallowed. Deep down, she did. This wasn’t about Vanguard. It had never been about Vanguard. This was about something older. Something that had been waiting for her to wake up. Something that Mr. Black had spent his life trying to control.

She inhaled slowly. “You knew, didn’t you?”

Mr. Black exhaled. “Jessica.”

She held his gaze. “You knew what I was.”

There was a long silence. He looked away for a second, then softly replied, “Yes.”

Jessica’s fingers curled against the chair. The truth settled in her bones. He had always known. He had been waiting for her to remember. Now, the real game had begun.