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Sam didn't argue, but his gaze was filled with a mixture of worry and guilt. Too much guilt for a man who'd been through hell and back in only a matter of days.
"Promise me you'll take care of yourself," he murmured, his voice thick with sleep.
"I will," I lied, knowing deep down that rest was the last thing on my agenda right now. I needed to figure out what the Viper's next move was going to be and how we could counter it.
With that promise hanging in the air, Sam's heavy lids finally succumbed to the pull of sleep. His chest rose and fell in slow rhythm as he drifted off, leaving me alone with my thoughts in the dimly lit room.
The silence felt heavy, filled with unspoken fears and haunting memories.
And then someone knocked on the door.
Chapter Sixteen: Sofia
Stephen was a mole.
But the rest of the people back in the underground bunker…the ones that the rest of the Blades were fighting against…I was almost certain they weren’t.
That realization was like a punch in my gut. It led to a string of questions that made my head spin. Why hadn’t they just killed us? What did they want? Who were these people?
"Are you okay?" Stephen's voice broke through my thoughts. I turned to look at him, my heart pounding with a newfound fear.
He watched me with an intense gaze, his features set in a grim expression, and for the first time since our reunion, I saw a hint of fear in his eyes. Fear for me? Or fear for himself?
I needed to know more about what was going on. "What about everyone else who works for my dad? What do they want?”
“A paycheck, I suspect,” Stephen said.
"But they're willing to kill for that paycheck?" I asked incredulously, shaking my head in disbelief.
He nodded. “Yes,” he said. “Surely, you’re not naïve. After everything that has happened.”
I walked around and sat on the couch in front of him, my heart hammering in my chest. “Why do you need my help, though? Couldn’t you have done this by yourself?”
Stephen furrowed his brow. "No," he said simply, but the quiet intensity in his voice sent shivers down my spine. "Without your insight, I'd be flying blind."
"Insight?" I echoed, feeling a cold dread seeping into my bones.
He nodded, leaning forward on his chair to meet my gaze. "The inside knowledge. The kind of information only a family member would have."
"But..." I started to protest, but he cut me off.
"Sofia," he said sternly, holding up a hand to silence me. "You know things about the Viper that we don't. Information that could be crucial in bringing him down.
I was silent for a moment, taken aback by his words. I had worked so hard to distance myself from my father's crimes that it was difficult accepting a role that required embracing it. “You’re wrong. I don’t know my father at all.”
“Maybe that’s true, but you still have something to do with this. He hasn’t wanted to let you go for a reason. I don’t know how he intends to use that leverage, I only know that he does intend to use it. So…”
“So what do you want from me?” I said, wishing that I hadn’t finished the whiskey he’d given me.
“I want you to pretend that you don’t know who I am, of course, and pretend that the Viper still has you captive. I want you as leverage for when it’s needed. And then, once we take him down, I want you to testify against him, but you’ll have to meet with my bosses for that.”
"In other words," I began, a bitter laugh escaping me, "you want me to keep playing the helpless victim." My heart was pounding so loudly I could hear it echoing in my ears.
Stephen shrugged, his expression not unkind. “We both know you’re anything but,” he said. “But if it’ll give us the edge we need, then yes.”
I was quiet for a long moment, thinking about his words. This was a dangerous game we were playing, one where the smallest mistake could cost us everything. But there was also a part of me that wanted to do this - to bring down the man who'd caused so much pain and suffering.
"Okay," I agreed finally, making my decision. "I'll do it. But only if you let me get in touch with Teo first.”
