Chapter 16: Shadows at Her Door

Chapter 16: Shadows at Her Door
The taxi ride back to Sundrift was anything but quiet.

The driver kept chattering away, his voice buzzing with excitement. “Miss, I swear, if I didn’t need my license, I’d beg you to let me take your car for a spin! You ever think about joining a race? You’ve got the soul of a racer!”

Elira gave a faint smile, but her gaze remained fixed on the dark road ahead. Moonlight filtered through the window, casting soft glows on her face as the old neighborhoods of Sundrift began to appear outside.

The streets here hadn’t changed much.

Old bricks. Rusted gates. The scent of osmanthus drifting in from some forgotten courtyard.

She stepped out and walked alone through the quiet, crumbling alleyways, the cool breeze whispering against her skin. The moonlight guided her steps as she neared the Kane Residence.

She was just about to push the gate open—when she froze.

The night was silent, yet Elira’s trained senses picked up something.

Breath.

Faint, shallow—coming from the corner of the wall.

Her eyes drifted that way casually. Under the pale moonlight, she saw the bloodstains she’d buried the other day. The rain must’ve washed away the dirt.

Her expression didn’t change. With one smooth turn, she pivoted and walked away, calm and collected.

No need to stir the hornet’s nest just yet.

She walked aimlessly through the streets, letting her instincts take her wherever felt safe. After nearly thirty minutes, she found herself at the foot of a back hill. The city lights sparkled far below, and in the distance, she could just make out the four-season osmanthus tree from the Kane courtyard.

She stopped. Waited.

“Aren’t you tired of hiding?” she said into the darkness. “Come out already.”

The shadows didn’t answer. At first, the wind was her only reply.

Then—

Several figures stepped into view. Silent. Cold. Their hostile glares fixed directly on her.

Assassins.

Elira recognized them instantly. The same group that had chased Luke the night she saved him.

She narrowed her eyes.

“Who sent you?” she asked calmly.

The men exchanged wary glances. One of them stepped forward. “What’s your relationship with Luke?”

Elira let out a soft, mocking laugh. “Luke? That kid from the Cross family? I’ve got nothing to do with him.”

The man seemed unconvinced. He was about to pull something out—maybe proof, maybe a weapon.

But Elira tilted her head, her voice cool and steady. “If I were to have a connection with someone… it would be someone like Draven Cross. Now that’s a man worth being curious about. Maybe I’m interested in him.”

The assassins stiffened.

For a moment, they hesitated. Who exactly was this woman?

“Enough games,” Elira said, her tone sharpening. “Who sent you? Why are you following me?”

No one answered.

Elira crossed her arms. “No? Then let me guess.”

She stepped forward slowly. “You messed with the Cross family, didn’t you? Went after Luke for money. Now you’re running from their retaliation. And you figured out I saved him—so you thought you could use me as leverage to negotiate. Sound about right?”

Their expressions shifted.

Then, one by one, they reached for the guns hidden beneath their jackets.

“If you know what’s good for you,” one warned, “you’ll come with us quietly.”

Elira’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Do you know why I don’t work with others?”

They hesitated, confused.

“Because no one is good enough to stand beside me.”

Before they could react, Elira’s figure blurred—vanishing like smoke.

A split second later, she appeared behind them.

One—

Two—

Three—

Bodies dropped, each motion precise and lethal. By the time the last one hit the ground, only one man remained alive, gasping and clutching his bleeding neck.

Elira stood above him, hands still in her pockets.

She looked down coldly. “You know, acting alone means only one person dies when things go wrong. But acting in a group? If even one of you is a fool… none of you survive.”

The man on the ground stared up, trembling. “Who… who are you?”

She knelt beside him, eyes dark as night.

“Phantom V,” she whispered.

His eyes widened in horror—and then closed forever.

With that, Elira turned and disappeared into the night, leaving no trace.

Back at the Kane Residence, Elira powered up her computer. Her fingers danced across the keyboard, launching secure protocols.

Far away in a hotel room in Mehenya, a man stirred from a post-coital sleep.

His name was Lucian.

His wristwatch blinked with a blue light.

He sat up immediately, shoved the woman beside him off without apology, and pressed a hidden button on the side of the watch. A projection screen hovered in front of him.

Encrypted message: “Lucian. Urgent. Return immediately.”

He stiffened.

There was only one person in the world who could reach him this way.

“Phantom V?” he typed, breath held.

The reply was immediate.

“Yes.”

Lucian exhaled shakily. “I knew it. I knew you weren’t dead! Even if the entire Obsidian Order fell—there’s no way you would.”

“I can’t meet you right now,” Elira typed. “Too risky. I’ll explain later.”

“I need a favor. Bodies at the back hill of Sundrift. Clean. Fast.”

Lucian didn’t hesitate. “Already on it.”

That night, a phantom cleaner erased every trace of blood and death from the mountain trail. Not a single clue remained.

No one would’ve ever guessed that a silent massacre had taken place under the stars.

Elira leaned back in her chair afterward, her expression unreadable.

She had hoped to remain in the shadows a little longer. Calling on Lucian this soon wasn’t ideal. But fate had other plans.

If the Obsidian Order found out she was alive… she wouldn't just face hunters.

She’d face annihilation.

She sighed. All this because she saved a boy. She had charged 150,000 for it—and it was already proving to be a bad bargain.

Just as she was thinking that, her phone buzzed.

Bank notification: 450,000 deposited.

She raised a brow.

“Well… not such a bad deal after all.”

—

The next morning — Paragon City.

Luke woke with a start. His phone was already buzzing with news from Sundrift.

The Red Sky assassins they’d been tailing had vanished.

Vanished.

Panic rose in him.

Could they have gone after her?

He rushed to Draven’s study without a second thought. “Uncle! I think they went after the woman who saved me!”

Draven didn’t look up from his newspaper. “I’ll send someone.”

“No—let me go. Please. She saved my life. If something happens to her—because of me—I’ll never forgive myself.”

Draven finally folded his paper.

“If you’re so concerned,” he said thoughtfully, “then I’ll go myself.”

Luke blinked. “You…? You’ll go to Sundrift?”

“You’re still recovering. It’s only proper that a senior from the Cross family repays a life-saving debt.”

“But…” Luke hesitated.

Draven’s sharp eyes narrowed. “What? Do you think I’m not qualified?”

“No, that’s not what I meant—”

“Then it’s settled. You rest. I’ll go.”

Luke opened his mouth but said nothing more.

No one ever questioned Draven Cross.

He just prayed his uncle wouldn’t scare her off.

—

Meanwhile, Elira returned from her morning run, drenched in sweat but mentally sharper than ever. The events of last night still lingered in her mind, but she was calm.

She tossed her clothes into the laundry basket and slipped under her covers, ready to finally get some sleep.

Just as her eyes fluttered shut—

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The door flew open.

“Elira!” Delilah’s voice rang out urgently.

Elira groaned. “What now?”