Chapter 297

Chapter 297
CHAPTER 297

The red targeting indicator remained fixed on Ethan’s position for only a second before it vanished from the screen.

Inside the observation room, nobody relaxed.

Arthur immediately ordered the security team to locate the sniper, while Marcus and Charles coordinated with the guards positioned throughout the observatory. Voices filled the communication channels, but Kayla found herself listening to only one thing—the steady sound of Jason’s breathing beside her.

Without realizing it, she had moved closer to him.

Jason glanced at her and gently took her hand. His fingers were warm despite the tension surrounding them, and the simple touch steadied the fear threatening to overwhelm her.

“You’ve been holding your breath,” he said quietly.

Kayla let out a slow sigh before looking at him.

“I didn’t even notice.”

“You don’t notice a lot of things when you’re worried about everyone else.”

A faint smile touched her lips.

“You make it sound like a bad habit.”

“It is when it keeps you from taking care of yourself.”

She studied his face for a moment. There were dark circles beneath his eyes from too many sleepless nights, and the lines around his expression had become more noticeable over the past few weeks. She had been so consumed by the endless discoveries about her family that she had forgotten Jason had been carrying the same burden with her every step of the way.

She reached up and gently smoothed the crease between his brows with her thumb.

“You look tired.”

Jason smiled.

“I could say the same about you.”

They both laughed softly, and for the first time in what felt like forever, the sound did not seem out of place.

Around them, the observatory continued to buzz with activity, but neither of them paid much attention to it.

“I miss us,” Kayla admitted.

Jason looked at her in surprise.

“We’re standing right here.”

She shook her head.

“No. I mean us before everything became another emergency. Before every conversation turned into a strategy meeting. Before every morning started with another secret waiting to be uncovered.”

Jason understood immediately.

He missed it too.

He missed waking up beside her without reaching for his phone. He missed teasing her over breakfast. He missed arguing about which movie to watch and pretending not to notice when she stole food from his plate.

Somewhere along the way, survival had replaced living.

He gently brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

“When this is over,” he said softly, “I’m taking you somewhere no one can find us.”

Kayla raised an eyebrow.

“Oh?”

“No security teams.”

She smiled.

“No encrypted messages.”

Her smile widened.

“No founder files.”

She laughed.

“And absolutely no Charles reminding us about schedules.”

As though summoned by his name, Charles looked over from the opposite side of the room.

“I heard that.”

Jason didn’t even try to hide his grin.

“I wanted you to.”

Charles rolled his eyes with exaggerated annoyance before returning to the monitors, earning a quiet chuckle from Marcus.

The lighthearted moment eased the tension in the room, if only briefly.

Kayla looked back at Jason.

“Where would you take me?”

He pretended to think about it.

“A small house by the sea.”

“You?”

“I’m serious.”

She searched his face, expecting another joke, but found only sincerity.

“There would be no bodyguards,” he continued. “No meetings. No business calls. Just the two of us.”

“And what would we do all day?”

Jason’s smile softened.

“We’d learn how to be ordinary.”

The answer caught her completely off guard.

She had expected something extravagant.

A private island.

A luxury resort.

Instead, he was describing peace.

She slipped her arms around his waist and rested her forehead against his chest.

“I’d like that.”

He wrapped his arms around her without hesitation.

“So would I.”

For a little while, neither of them spoke.

The warmth of the embrace said everything words could not.

Jason closed his eyes briefly, memorizing the feeling of holding her. There had been countless moments when he feared he would lose her, and each one had taught him to treasure even the smallest moments they shared.

Kayla listened to the steady rhythm of his heartbeat.

It reminded her of the first time she had allowed herself to trust him.

She had fought her feelings for so long because loving Jason had seemed dangerous.

Now she realized that loving him had become the safest place she knew.

“I never told you something,” she whispered.

Jason looked down at her.

“What is it?”

“The day we met, I told myself I would never fall in love with you.”

He laughed softly.

“I remember. You weren’t exactly subtle about it.”

“I thought you were arrogant.”

“I was.”

“I thought you only cared about revenge.”

“I did.”

She smiled.

“So what changed?”

Jason gently lifted her chin until their eyes met.

“You did.”

The words were simple, but they carried a truth she had never doubted.

“You showed me there was something worth choosing instead of revenge,” he continued. “You gave me a future I couldn’t see for myself.”

Emotion filled Kayla’s eyes.

She leaned forward and kissed him gently.

It was not rushed or desperate.

It was quiet.

Tender.

A promise more than a celebration.

When they finally pulled apart, neither of them noticed that everyone else in the room had politely found reasons to look in other directions.

Arthur cleared his throat as discreetly as possible while Marcus suddenly became fascinated by one of Noor’s monitors.

Only Evelyn smiled knowingly.

“About time they remembered they were in love,” she murmured.

Before anyone could tease them further, Noor’s voice cut gently through the room.

“I’m sorry to interrupt…”

The warmth immediately gave way to attention.

Noor looked up from her workstation, her expression serious but no longer panicked.

“I’ve found something.”

Jason reluctantly released Kayla’s hand, though his thumb brushed gently across her fingers one last time.

“What is it?”

Noor turned the monitor toward them.

“The sniper never fired.”

Arthur frowned.

“Why?”

Noor zoomed in on the thermal feed.

A new figure had appeared on the ridge overlooking the eastern perimeter.

Whoever it was had intercepted the sniper before a single shot could be taken.

The two silhouettes stood facing each other in the darkness, neither willing to retreat.

Then the unidentified figure slowly turned toward the observatory and deliberately stepped into the moonlight.

Kayla’s heart skipped.

She recognized the woman immediately.

“So… my mother had one final ally after all,” she whispered.