The prison wing greeted them not with alarms or screams, but with the quiet hum of fluorescent lighting and the low murmur of voices behind thick, reinforced doors. The hallway felt colder here—steel and silence entwined in every breath they took.Lili and Notori stepped through the secured threshold, boots echoing with practiced rhythm. As the heavy door slid shut behind them, they found themselves locking eyes not with a camera or a guard, but with Rafael himself—already inside the interrogation chamber.
He stood at the center of the sterile, dimly lit room, but far from calm. His back was turned to them, broad shoulders squared, arms clasped behind him. Before him sat the prisoner, her head bowed, a dark streak of dried blood trailing from her temple to her cheek where Lili’s shadowy strike had landed earlier. She was conscious now, wrists bound to the arms of the chair, but her posture was almost relaxed.
Mike stood to the side of the room, arms crossed, the crease between his brows deeper than usual. He gave Lili and Notori a slight nod as they entered. “Glad you could finally join us,” he whispered. “Hope we didn’t interrupt… anything important.”
Lili’s spine stiffened slightly. Notori’s smirk faltered before becoming unfazed again. “We came straight here,” Lili replied. “Didn’t know we were running behind schedule.”
Rafael finally turned. His gaze swept over them. His eyes lingered just a moment too long where their shoulders were a little too close, where a hint of morning dishevelment still clung to their collars. But if he had a thought, he kept it locked behind that unreadable stare.
The prisoner slowly raised her head, her eyes catching Lili’s. There was no fear in them and perhaps the flicker of a grin. “Well, well,” the woman drawled. “Look who’s come back for round two. I was starting to think you just liked to knock women out and vanish.”
Lili took a step forward. “You know who we are. Now you’ll tell us who you are. And who you were working for.”
The woman tilted her head. “Funny. I was about to ask you the same thing.”
Rafael’s voice sliced through. “Let’s make one thing clear,” he said. “You’re not here to ask questions. You’re here to answer them. And you’ll start talking willingly, or not.”
Notori leaned casually against the wall, arms folded, firelight flickering just beneath his fingertips. “You should talk,” he said with a sly grin. “She’s not the merciful one between us.”
The woman’s smile faded slightly.
Then Rafael turned to Lili. “She’s yours.”
Lili stepped forward. The woman in the chair scratched and bruised tried to maintain the illusion of composure. But her fingers twitched at the restraints, betraying the tiniest crack in her facade. “You seem confident,” Lili murmured. “That tells me one of two things. You’re either stupid… or you’ve been promised something.”
She stopped behind the prisoner, speaking now to the back of her head. “But I actually don’t think you’re stupid,” Lili continued. “You chose to attack us only after we retrieved the documents.” She leaned in, her voice falling to a whisper that somehow echoed louder than a scream. “So… what did they offer you to risk walking into two Gifted? Immunity? Money? Your freedom? Or was it something else? Maybe someone you’re trying to protect?” She stepped in front of her again. “Tell me… who are you bleeding for?”
The woman looked up, jaw clenched, but something in her eyes trembled. Lili caught it and her gaze sharpened.
“Still silent?” Lili said. “That’s fine. Silence is a language too. You see—” she leaned forward, placing her hands on either side of the chair “—I don’t need blood to get what I want. Fear works much better. And pain, when it comes, is just a small piece at the end of a story I already know how to write.”
The woman broke her silence with a low exhale. “You’re darker than they said.”
“Who said?” Lili asked, tone deceptively soft.
The woman smiled, lips barely twitching, eyes gleaming with a hint of pride. “But you’re going to have to try harder than that.”
Lili’s eyes didn’t blink. They didn’t soften. But she straightened, withdrawing a step. The woman relaxed for half a breath. Then the shadows moved. Thin black tendrils unfurled behind Lili and slipped around the prisoner’s chair.
Lili didn’t raise her voice. “I’m only patient because he’s in the room.” She tilted her chin toward Rafael. “If it were up to me, we’d already be in the dark.”
The woman’s breath caught. Her eyes darted toward Rafael, then to Notori, and back to Lili.
Rafael finally spoke. “This is the part where you choose to talk before she forgets I’m here.”
Another moment passed.
The woman swallowed. “There’s a name,” the woman muttered, her voice thin, cracking under the weight of whatever she’d been gripping into. “Someone paid… more than we thought. To intercept you. I don’t know who. But the one who hired us called herself Varena. No last name. She didn’t work alone.”
Lili’s eyes flicked to Rafael, who gave a subtle nod. “Keep going,” he said.
Lili stepped closer to the prisoner with the unsettling smirk. “Varena,” she said slowly.
The prisoner blinked and gasped.
Half of Lili’s face was swallowed in shadows from her jaw to her temple, licking up her cheek, veiling her eye in darkness. The other eye burned a violent, unnatural red. “Tell me,” Lili continued. “Tell me everything you’re still holding.”
The woman tried to look away, but the shadows followed, shifting with Lili’s slightest motion. There was nowhere to hide. Lili leaned closer.
“She… she wore a veil, always,” the woman stammered, voice pitching high with fear. “But I saw her once, by mistake. Red hair. Eyes…one was white, the other like copper. She had a man with her, always quiet. Big. Didn’t speak. I think he’s Gifted.”
“What kind of Gift?” Rafael asked from the corner.
“I—I don’t know,” she choked. “But he touched a man once, and he just… stopped. Like his heart just forgot to beat.”
“Death touch?” Notori murmured, half to himself. “That’s rare.”
Lili didn’t take her eyes off the woman. Her voice was low now. “Where were they headed? What were they after?”
The prisoner swallowed hard. “They mentioned something… beneath the city. She said it was hidden under. That’s all I know. I swear. Please.”
Lili’s red eye narrowed and the shadows hesitated… then slowly peeled away. Her eye also dimmed, the bloody hue draining into nothingness. She straightened her spine. “She’s done,” Lili said quietly.
Rafael nodded once before he opened the door and exited. Lili followed and Notori close behind. Once the heavy door sealed shut behind them, locking the woman inside her silence and fear, Rafael finally spoke: “We’ll follow the lead. You did well, Lili.”
She offered no response, just a nod. Rafael gave one last glance between the two of them, then walked off down the hallway.
Notori let the silence linger until his lips spread in a sly grin. “You know,” he said playfully, “you’re absolutely terrifying when you do that thing with your eyes.”
Lili raised a brow, then giggled lightly. “You say that like it’s a compliment.”
“Maybe it is,” he smirked, lifting an eyebrow right back at her, pretending to be thoughtful. “I mean, I might be into it. Just… remind me not to piss you off.”
She elbowed him lightly as they turned the corner together, her mood visibly lighter now. “I’m sure you’ll forget eventually.”
“Probably. But at least I’ll go out in style. Engulfed in shadows, cursing myself for thinking red eyes were hot.”
Lili chuckled again, softer this time.
Rafael turned toward them too fast from somewhere afar to hear them, but not far away to be heard. “I almost forgot,” he said sharply. “We need to talk about that contact you’ve been keeping from us, Lili.”
Lili’s boots stopped mid stride and her spine stiffened. “Sir, with respect, we should focus on the current threat.”
“And we are,” Rafael replied. “It’s mighty convenient these mercs knew exactly where to intercept you.”
Lili’s brows drew close. “My contact isn’t a traitor.”
Rafael’s arms folded. “How can you be sure?”
“Because I’ve worked with her long enough to know what betrayalis,” Lili said. “If she was the type to sell me out, she would’ve done it years ago.”
Rafael’s gaze shifted to Notori. “What’s your read on this contact?”
“She seemed genuinely worried about Lili,” Notori said plainly. “Didn’t feel like an act. I don’t think she’s the leak, sir.”
Rafael studied him, then turned back to Lili. “I need her name.”
Lili’s mouth parted, but nothing came out. She inhaled once, then met Rafael’s eyes.
“With all due respect, sir,” she said slowly, “I’m asking you not to pursue her. She trusts me. That’s rare. If we burn that bridge now, we lose a valuable ally. But if we leave it standing… she’ll help again, if needed.”
The room hung in tension. Rafael’s gaze bore into her, as if weighing every ounce of her conviction against every inch of operational risk.
Finally, he exhaled. “For now,” he replied. “But if this goes sideways again, her name won’t just be a request. It’ll be an order.”
Lili gave a single nod. “Understood.”
Rafael turned and walked off down the hall.
Once he was gone, Notori leaned closer into a whisper. “You’re risking a lot for her.”
Lili stared after Rafael for a moment before replying. “She once saved me when I didn’t deserve saving,” she said finally. “That kind of loyalty… doesn’t just disappear.”
Notori gave a soft nod, eyes softer than his voice. “Then she’s lucky. You don’t hand out your loyalty easy.”
Lili gave the faintest smile. “Neither do you.”
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