SECRETARY'S POV

It was just after 7 p.m. The sky was dark, and the streetlights flickered to life one by one as I walked quietly into a small cafe tucked away on the edge of town. No one from the company knew this place and that was the point.


I spotted Raheem at the far corner, he sat by a window with a steaming mug of black coffee. He didn't wave and he didn't smile and That was the point also.

I slipped into the seat across from him, and pulled the hood of my jacket further over my face. The shadows in the café were deep and safe and just like Raheem liked it

He nodded once. 'You're here."


I nodded too, and I slowly pulled out a small flash drive from my pocket. 'This is everything from the last three weeks. Emails, recorded calls, behavioral logs. You will find the pattern Hades is following."

Raheem took it without looking at it. He pocketed it like it was just a receipt.


Then there was silence, he was mute, I was quite, like we were both waiting for who will speak next.

I sat still and wrapped my fingers around the edge of the table. The hum of the fridge near the counter was loud, it was too loud and then I cleared my throat.

And then I eventually broke the decorum 'Raheem" I hesitated 'Why do I feel like he is not the villain?" I asked such rhetorical questions that would make him ask why and yes he did, our eyes met as he lifted his eyes up, they were too sharp, too sharp and unreadable, even though I knew what the response would be, I still felt like they were unreadable. 'What do you mean?"

'I mean Hades," I whispered. 'He's arrogant, manipulative, yes. But, lately, I have seen something else. The cracks, the doubts and the way he talks to himself when he thinks I am not listening. I don't think he is the real threat."

'Hades js unraveling, he barely comes to the office now and he drinks more and sleep less, is team is growing suspicious and they don't know where to look, he is isolated,"

Raheem nodded and leaned back, folding his arms. 'And who is?"

I swallowed 'I don't know and that was the problem."

A long pause followed as he watched me closely, his eyes were unreadable.

'Tell me something, who are we really working for? Who is behind all this?" I asked softly.

He didn't answer. He didn't flinch. He just sipped his coffee, it was slow and quiet.

My voice cracked a little. 'I deserve to know, don't I?"

'You did your job," he said finally. 'That is what matters."

I sighed.There was no satisfaction in that.

Raheem continued, 'The operation is done. You are off it! I don't need you anymore,"

A cold wave washed over me. 'So that's it?"

'Yes."

'And what do I do now?"

'You go back to living your life quietly. As if none of this ever happened."

I nodded and stared down at the untouched tea in front of me. I didn't even remember ordering it.

I didn't say goodbye when I left. He didn't either and that was how things like this ended. There were no farewells and it was just silence.

I returned to the office that night for the last time and the desk felt like it didn't belong to me anymore. I packed quietly, not wanting to draw attention. No one noticed and one ever really did.

Before I walked out for good, I wrote one small note and I folded it once and left it on Hades' chair.

It reads:

'Sometimes, loyalty is invisible. Be careful who watches your back." and then I walked away.

There was no word and there was no trace.

RAHEEM'S POV

The moment the secretary left the café, I slided the flash drive across the table and examined it without plugging it in. I already knew what was inside. Her work has been thorough.

I pulled out my phone and dialled a private line. It rang once, twice and then clicked and then a voice came through. It was cold and controlled.

'Jane."

'Report," she commanded.

'It was done. The asset has exited. No suspicion," I responded.

'She's still in the dark?"

I nodded even though she couldn't see me. 'She thought she worked for me alone. Your name never came up."

'Good. Keep it that way."

'Jane," I said after a pause, 'you are alone now. If Hades fights back"

'I want him to fight," she interrupted sharply. 'I want to see what he looks like when everything he believes in burns to ash."

There was silence for a moment, then her voice returned, softer but colder. 'Thank you, Raheem, for your loyalty."

'This is the last time I get involved," I said. 'From now on, this is your war."

She didn't respond. The line went dead.

I sat back in my chair and closed my eyes. It was over, my involvement, at least.

RK Ventures will pull out of Hades' radar completely. No ties, no links. We were done playing neutral.

I took one final action before leaving the café. I upload a lockbox of encrypted files to a private server. Only one person had the key and it was Jane.

It was everything she needed if Hades ever came after her.

Once it was done, I shut down the server terminal and then I disappeared.

No press release, no email and no trail… except the one she alone could follow.

JANE'S POV

I stood at the top of the Empire Suites building, the city lights blinked like stars below me.

Raheem was gone. The secretary has left her post, the stage was mine now.

I smiled softly and watched the city breathe beneath me.

'One game ends," I whispered 'Another begins."

I turned from the window, my heels clicked softly on marble.

'It was time for my next move.

And Hades! He won't see it coming"