Prince Lander Thorne stepped into the blood-soaked scene, his eyes narrowing as he took in the carnage. His gaze swept over the room, lingering on the bodies of his men, their faces frozen in death. Then, his eyes landed on Gray, her body crumpled on the floor, surrounded by the devastation she had wrought.
For a moment, Lander was struck by a sense of déjà vu. Her fighting style, the precision, the ruthlessness—it mirrored the actions of the mysterious figure who had helped the Phantoms during his failed ambush on their mission weeks ago. Mmmn, Mom's right, she really is a danger to our family. She needs to know Gray is also a sniper.
He approached her slowly, his boots crunching over broken glass. "Well, well, isn't this a surprise?" he drawled, crouching beside her. "Who would have thought the unassuming Princess Gale Raven Yrenea could fight like this?"
Gray stirred weakly, lifting her head just enough to glare at him. Despite her condition, her eyes burned with defiance.
Lander smirked. "Impressive, I'll admit. But you're in no position to fight back now, are you?" He leaned closer, his voice dropping to a whisper. "I wonder what your husband would think if he saw you like this. Would he be proud? Or would he be furious to see you so vulnerable? He seems to have develop feelings for you. That's no surprise. You really have a thing in enchanting people with this strong, herroic persona."
Gray gritted her teeth, refusing to answer. Her strength was fading fast, but she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of seeing her break.
"Take her," Lander ordered, straightening. "Carefully. I want her alive."
Outside, the rescue team had successfully extracted Mireille, but their retreat was bitter. Prince Lucian, Lira, Gavin, and Blake sat in tense silence as their vehicle sped away from the battlefield. Mireille clung to Lira, tears streaming down her face as she sobbed uncontrollably.
"She's still there," Mireille choked out. "Gray—she's still there!"
"We know," Lucian said, his voice strained. He tightened his grip on his weapon, his knuckles white. "But we couldn't—"
"We had no choice," Gavin cut in, his voice low. "She gave us the order to leave. If we stayed, we all would've been taken—or worse."
"It doesn't make it right," Blake muttered, his jaw tight.
The atmosphere in the vehicle was suffocating. They had saved Mireille, but the cost of leaving Gray behind weighed heavily on all of them.
---
Back at the palace, relief flooded the halls as news of Mireille's return spread. Queen Amara embraced her daughter tightly, tears streaming down her face. "You're safe," she whispered, her voice breaking. "You're safe, my love."
But as the joy of Mireille's rescue settled, the absence of Gray loomed like a dark cloud. Amara's heart ached, worry etched into every line of her face.
Louise stood to the side, her arms crossed tightly over her chest. Her face was a mask of fury and concern. She paced the room, muttering under her breath. "She wouldn't let herself be taken without a plan. She wouldn't."
Lucian's team stood awkwardly by the door, their heads bowed in shame.
Finally, Louise turned to them, her voice sharp. "You left her behind."
"She ordered us to," Lucian said quietly. "She knew the mission would fail if we didn't retreat."
Louise's jaw clenched, her knuckles whitening as she gripped her laptop. "Of course, she did. That's Gray." She exhaled shakily, her anger giving way to worry. "But you have no idea what they'll do to her, how that damn stepmother of hers hates her mere existence. She's hurt, and if they figure out who she really is—"
"She activated it," Lira interjected, cutting off Louise's spiraling thoughts.
"What does that mean?" Gavin demanded. "What's activated?"
Louise didn't waste another second. "Gray and I built a safeguard. A GPS tracker in our rings. If one of us is ever taken…" She placed her laptop on the table and opened it, her fingers flying over the keyboard.
Lira's eyes widened. "You can track her?"
Louise nodded. "It's more than that. But we need to act fast."
The others gathered around as she pulled up a map, a blinking dot indicating Gray's location.
"She's in Trigis," Louise said grimly. "Valyshire territory. Deep in enemy hands."
Blake frowned. "What's the plan? You said the ring is more than just a tracker."
Louise nodded. "The signal transmits a failsafe—a program Gray and I developed. It can hack into nearby systems: security cameras, communication lines, anything electronic. If they think they can hold her without us knowing, they're wrong."
The screen shifted to display live footage from the facility. The team watched in stunned silence as the camera feed revealed Gray, bound to a chair in a dimly lit room. Her head hung low, her body slumped, but she was alive.
"She's not in good shape," Gavin muttered, his voice heavy.
"She will be," Louise said, her voice firm. "We're getting her back."
Meanwhile, Dale stormed into the palace, his presence like a thunderclap. His expression was a mix of fury and panic as he approached Lucian's team.
"You left her?" he growled, his voice trembling with barely contained rage. "You left my wife, Ryo?"
"Renn—" Lucian began, but Dale cut him off.
"She's out there, hurt and alone, because you couldn't finish the job!"
"We didn't have a choice," Lucian snapped. "She ordered us to leave."
"And you listened?" Dale's voice rose, his fists clenched.
"Dale, please," Queen Amara interjected, stepping forward. Her face was pale, her eyes red from crying. "This isn't helping."
Dale's gaze softened as he looked at her, but his anger didn't fade entirely. "I need to go to her, Mom" he said, his voice quieter but no less determined.
"You can't," Amara said gently. "You're not well enough."
"Dad won't let you," Lucian added, his tone regretful.
Dale let out a bitter laugh, shaking his head. "To hell with Dad's permission."
"Capt—" Rhys interjected, but King Gregor, who just arrived, cut him off.
"You're a soldier, David Lennox. Act like one" King Gregor strictly said.
"Dad, that's my wife we're talking about. She just came home from a mission, now injured and abducted—" Dale reasoned out, but his father interjected before he could finish.
"And you just survived a gunshot injury and you haven't fully recovered. Calm yourself down and use that intellect of yours," King Gregor said calmly. "Gather intel and plan your rescue strategy well, or you'll just further endanger your wife."
He turned away, his shoulders tense, as Louise approached him. "We'll get her back," she said firmly. "Gray planned for this. She knew what she was doing."
Dale didn't respond, but his jaw tightened, his resolve clear.
---
Back in Trigis, Gray stirred awake. Pain shot through her body as she blinked against the harsh light. She was still in the same room, her hands bound, her head pounding.
The door creaked open, and she looked up to see Prince Lander enter, a smug smile on his face.
"Well, you're awake," he said, his tone mocking. "You gave us quite the show back there. I had no idea you were so… talented."
Gray glared at him but said nothing.
Lander chuckled, circling her like a predator. "You know, you remind me of someone. Someone who made my life very difficult not too long ago." He leaned closer, his voice dropping. "The one who helped the Phantoms. That was you, wasn't it?"
Gray's expression remained neutral, but her silence was answer enough.
Lander smirked. "I thought so."
He straightened, his smile fading as he looked down at her. "Enjoy your stay, Doctor Gray slash the sniper. You won't be leaving anytime soon."
The door slammed shut behind him, leaving Gray alone once more. She closed her eyes, her mind racing. She could endure this. She can't endanger Vaeloris. She had to.
For Mireille. For her family. For Dale, her beloved husband.