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Chapter 19: Tension Wound Tight

The next mission came with barely a day’s rest.

Encrypted messages. Missing children. A hidden lab in the southern district.

Time-sensitive. High risk.

The team was sharp. Focused.

Except Rook.

She hadn’t slept in four nights.

Dark circles spread like ink beneath her eyes.

Her hands trembled when she thought no one was looking.

She stayed in the operations room, hunched over glowing screens, typing silently until her fingers bled.

Cain noticed.

Vera worried.

But no one stopped her.

Because Rook didn’t allow it.

---

Day Five – 02:11 AM

The office was silent.

All lights off, except one — at the back corner.

Rook sat on the floor again, cross-legged.

Three laptops open.

Six files scattered around her like broken feathers.

Her coat had fallen off her shoulder. Her breath was shallow.

She wasn’t quite awake.

Not quite asleep.

Somewhere in between — where old memories live.

---

Grayson entered quietly, holding a warm drink.

He saw her — small, still, shaking.

He approached slowly, gently, like you would with a frightened animal.

> “Rook,” he said softly.

“You should rest.”

No response.

He knelt and placed a hand gently on her shoulder—

—and the knife was at his throat before he could breathe.

---

It happened in a blur.

Steel flashed.

Grayson didn’t move — not out of fear, but understanding.

Rook’s eyes had changed — wide, unseeing, panicked.

She wasn’t here.

She was somewhere else.

Back there.

> “I’ll be good—”

“I didn’t scream—”

“Please—”

Her voice cracked.

And then she blinked. Realized. Dropped the knife.

It hit the ground with a clatter.

She backed away, horror in every breath.

> “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

“I’m sorry— I— I didn’t—”

---

Grayson picked up the knife slowly and set it down far from her.

He didn’t raise his voice. Didn’t flinch.

He just looked at her, not as a boss… but like a father seeing the bruises he never knew were there.

> “Rook,” he said gently,

“when was the last time you slept?”

She couldn’t answer.

Her throat closed.

Her shoulders trembled.

And then — not a cry, not a collapse — just a soft whisper:

> “It never stops.”

---

A Few Hours Later

Cain found her asleep.

Curled on the couch in the server room.

Blanket over her. Lights dimmed.

Grayson stood nearby, arms crossed, guarding the silence.

Cain sat beside him.

> “She almost cut your throat,” he said.

Grayson gave a small, tired smile.

> “She also saved us all last week.”

Cain looked at the girl, breathing in uneven sleep.

> “Is this going to break her?”

> “No,” Grayson said softly.

“It already did.

Now we’re trying to put the pieces back.”

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End of Chapter 19