Chapter 48 When It Breaks
The crash echoed again, louder this time, like something heavy had been thrown against a wall.
My heart slammed hard against my ribs as the sound rippled through the building, followed by footsteps. Not slow anymore. Not careful.
Fast.
They were searching.
Kylen’s grip tightened around my wrist as he pulled me slightly behind him, his body shifting into something solid and unmovable, like he was ready to take the impact of whatever came next.
“Stay close,” he said again, his voice lower now, more dangerous.
Adrian stepped to my other side, his eyes scanning the hallway with sharp focus. “We need an exit,” he muttered.
“There’s a back corridor,” Kylen replied quickly. “But we’re not running yet.”
Not running.
That didn’t sound good.
Another crash. Closer.
My pulse spiked, adrenaline kicking in as my senses sharpened all at once. Every sound felt louder, every movement clearer.
“Why do I feel like they’re getting closer faster than they should?” I whispered.
Kylen didn’t look at me.
“They are.”
Before I could ask what that meant—
Footsteps hit the hallway outside the room.
No hesitation.
No pause.
They knew exactly where we were.
The door slammed open.
Two men rushed in this time. Not three. Not cautious.
Focused.
“Take the file,” one of them said immediately.
Everything happened at once.
Kylen moved first, shoving one of them back hard enough to knock him into the doorframe. The impact echoed through the room, sharp and violent.
Adrian grabbed the second one before he could reach me, blocking him, forcing him backward with a strength I hadn’t expected.
“Lenora, move!” Adrian snapped.
But I couldn’t.
My feet felt stuck to the ground, my mind racing too fast to catch up.
The room blurred for a second.
Then everything… sharpened.
Too sharp.
I could see every movement.
Every shift in weight.
Every intention before it happened.
The man Adrian was holding twisted suddenly, trying to break free.
I saw it before he even moved.
“Adrian, left!” I shouted instinctively.
He reacted immediately, shifting just in time to avoid the hit that would have landed straight into his side.
Both of them froze for half a second.
That was all it took.
Kylen slammed the other man into the wall again, harder this time, knocking the air out of him completely.
“What the hell—” Adrian started, glancing at me.
But I wasn’t looking at him.
I was staring at the second man.
Because I knew what he was about to do.
Before he even did it.
“He’s going for your shoulder,” I said quickly.
Adrian moved again without questioning it, blocking the move before it even happened.
The man froze, confusion flashing across his face.
“How did she—”
I didn’t hear the rest.
Because something inside me snapped.
The pressure in my chest built too fast, too strong, like something was pushing outward, demanding release.
My breathing quickened.
My vision sharpened even more.
Too much.
Everything was too much.
“Lenora,” Kylen’s voice cut through, sharp and urgent. “Stop.”
Stop?
I wasn’t doing anything.
Or maybe…
I was.
The man in front of me moved again, reaching forward.
And before I could think—
I reacted.
Fast.
Too fast.
I grabbed his wrist, twisting it hard enough to force him down.
A gasp escaped him as he hit the ground.
Silence followed.
Not complete silence.
But the kind that comes after something unexpected.
All three of them were staring at me now.
Kylen.
Adrian.
The man on the floor.
I let go slowly, my hand trembling slightly as reality started to settle back in.
“What…” I whispered.
My heart raced, my breathing uneven.
I hadn’t thought.
I hadn’t planned.
I just knew what to do.
Kylen stepped toward me carefully, his expression tight with something I couldn’t fully read.
Not just concern.
Not just fear.
Recognition.
“I told you,” he said quietly.
My chest tightened.
“Told me what?”
“That you’re different.”
The word hit harder this time.
Because now…
I felt it.
Adrian looked between us, his expression sharper than ever. “You’re not just talking about instincts, are you?”
Kylen didn’t answer him.
His focus stayed on me.
“Lenora,” he said, softer now. “You need to breathe.”
I didn’t realize I wasn’t until that moment.
I inhaled slowly, trying to steady myself, trying to make sense of what just happened.
But nothing about it felt normal.
Nothing about me felt normal.
“What did they do to me?” I asked quietly.
Kylen’s jaw tightened.
“They didn’t do this to you,” he said.
My eyes snapped to his.
“They found it.”
A chill ran through me.
Found it.
Before I could ask what that meant—
More footsteps echoed from the hallway.
More than before.
Adrian cursed under his breath. “We don’t have time for this right now.”
Kylen grabbed my hand again, pulling me toward the door.
“We’re leaving,” he said.
This time…
I didn’t argue.
Because whatever I was starting to understand about myself…
Someone else already knew.
And they were coming for it.