The slow click of deep scarlet stilettos echoed throughout the empty halls of the museum. The only light was the full moon filtering through the windows. The person in heels stopped at an office door and soon the tumbling of a lock and a lock pick quietly shuffled about until successful. A woman dressed in a black pencil skirt and a blouse that matched her heels stalked over to the system that was left dark. She tossed her long, dark locks over her shoulders and cracked her fingers.
“Apologies, Mr. Cress,” an American voice with a light French accent murmured to herself. ” But you’ve left too many tracks behind,” she added as her fingers made quick work once the computer system was up and running. She had heard through the grapevine that Mr. Cress had blocked out specific time slots in his schedule that didn’t line up with his usual duties. Sabrina worked with enough museums to know many key individuals, like her ex, had their routines. Sabrina Lennox’s honeyed gaze flicked between her watch and the loading screen as her program hacked into the feed into HiveMind facility where the father of her children was.
Horror grew on the woman’s face as she saw the video feed of her eldest daughter dressed in a shredded patient suit. She tore her sight away from Auri to her ex-husband. Her hands gripped tight as the familiar voice of Von Galloes taunted Thierry. A quick typing of her fingers hacked into Thierry’s earpiece.
”Thierry, he only has as much power as you give him,” Sabrina kept her voice calm and controlled. Someone had to be. Knowing her ex-husband, he was having a meltdown at the sight of their eldest daughter. ” There’s more to meet the eye. There always is with him,”she added with a bit of grit in her tone. Sabrina was trying to keep herself level-headed as there was only one other thing she could do to help.
” Time to shed some light on the subject, Vonny,” she growled as it took her a few minutes, and granted, Theo was probably much better at hacking than she was, especially with new technology, but it was like putting a puzzle together. Once the pieces were there, they clicked into place. Suddenly, the hallway where Thierry and Nick were flooded with light. It gave the two time to help Aurélie and get to safety from whatever they were running from. Sabrina touched her cheeks, not realizing that tears were flowing down her face.
”Save her, Thierry. If that’s all you can do for her, bring her home,” she murmured to herself as she stayed online but muted her end. Sabrina hadn’t given up on finding her girls. She prayed endlessly, losing both Auri and Cosette had been the tipping point for her and Thierry’s relationship seven years ago. Even if she couldn’t help but still love the fool to this day.
Stella arched an eyebrow as she could hear the heartbeat that 3 had mentioned. The dragon was talking to her within her mind. She lowered her defensive stance as she looked up at the giant creature. Her gaze flicked around the stone room they were in, bones that weren’t human littered the corner just out of reach of the dragon’s swipe of claws, and then down at the rod in her hand. Her sapphire gaze flicked to Star, a knowing look in her eyes.
”They’ve kept you trapped down here. Just like the rest of us,” Stella concluded as she glanced back at the dragon in its glowing eyes, then down its body. The ferocious beast was covered in scars, a large, white chipped, metal collar and chain anchored into the floor.
”You were here long before any of this. They lured you in here. Killed your young,” the white-haired woman saw in the corner of her sight, the group slowly slinking to the submarine. Her blue hues never wavered from the dragon’s. Stella began to walk carefully and slowly to the giant lizard. Her hands were raised as a sign of peace.
“I am sorry for the pain that you have been put through. I cannot take what they have done back, however, I can give you peace. It is all I can offer to a creature of such magnificent power,” she spoke the honest truth. Her ocean eyes slacked to a sorrowful expression. She wasn’t sure if she was going to keep her promise to 3. Stella had told the girl that once they got to the surface, she would help her find out about her past.
”Forgive me, great creature,” Stella murmured as she was finally close enough with her speech. “GO NOW!” she ordered as the group would be close enough to dash to the safety of the submarine.
With a quick hit on a rock, the rod became a spear and with a powerful shove, Stella forced the electrical rod into the dragon’s chest. Soon the young woman cried out in deafening pain. Stella’s eyes wide with shock as she watched the violet-hued light of the dragon’s heart flow through the rod, down her arm, and into her chest. Her arm, shoulder, and chest pulsed with bright purple veins and arteries due to the power transfer.
“Be…free… Stella uttered gently to the dragon despite the excruciating pain.
Once the light faded in the dragon’s eyes, Ghost let go of the rod and stumbled backward. For a moment she paused, Stella wanted to pass out as her body convulsed with the power she just consumed but she needed to get going. She tried her best to run to the submarine to avoid the shadow people who seemed to freak out Aaron and Ramses but she stumbled over some of the ruined foundations. Her arms forced herself back up, her teeth gritted in anguish and scrambled as much as she could to the submarine. The sound of the submarine starting to start, she locked eyes with 3, her expression softened.
” I’m sorry,” Stella called out as she switched her gaze to Star. “Take her to Dragon. Keep her safe!” she ordered as the submarine door closed before her just as she was five feet from the submarine dock. Stella collapsed on the deck, succumbing to the pain that coursed through her body.