Chapter 918
“Just the bad parts,” Julian coughed — a wet, rattling sound. He gestured toward the fire. “Blackmail. Extortion. The dirty laundry of the Vance family. I’m purifying the legacy.”
“You’re sick.” Skye pressed her hand to his forehead. He was burning up. “We need a doctor.”
“No doctors.” He grabbed her wrist. His grip was surprisingly weak. “It’s not just the stress, Skye. I think I was exposed to something. The day Ethan was taken. A gas.” He reached beneath the cushion and drew out a heavy, leather-bound folder, holding it out to her.
“What is this?”
“The keys,” Julian whispered. “To the Vance intelligence network. The spies, the backdoors, the dark web nodes. Everything.”
“Why are you giving this to me?”
“Because I can’t do it anymore.” Tears leaked from the corners of his eyes. “I failed Ethan. I failed my family. But you — you have the strength to use this weapon for good.”
“Julian, I can’t run a spy network.”
Wее𝗸𝗅y 𝗋el𝖾а𝘴𝘦s 𝗈𝘯 𝘨a𝗹𝘯ovе𝗅ѕ.c𝗼𝗺
“You already are,” he said, managing a weak smile. “Take it. Unite the families. Thorne muscle, Kensington money, Vance eyes. It’s the only way to beat Silas. To beat the Mastermind.”
Skye took the folder. It felt heavy in her hands, weighted with a thousand secrets.
“I promise,” she said, her voice thick. “I will get Ethan back. I will fix this.”
“I know,” Julian closed his eyes. “Now go. Before I change my mind.”
Skye walked out of the estate clutching the folder to her chest. The rain had stopped, leaving the air crisp and clean. She sat in her car and opened it.
The first page wasn’t a list of spies. It was a file marked The Founders.
Thorne. Graves. Kensington. Vance.
Origin: Elysium Island, 1920.
She already knew their families were connected to the island. But what she read next made her breath catch.
Project: LEGACY KEY.
It wasn’t a computer password. It was a physical artifact — a failsafe device created by the four original founders to shut down the Elysium AI if it ever went rogue. The file contained a detailed sketch: a complex, interlocking mechanism divided into four parts, each section housing a gemstone that served as a conductive core.
“The Mastermind isn’t just an external enemy,” Skye whispered, the full scope of it settling over her like a weight. “He’s trying to reassemble the Key to gain total control.”
Her phone buzzed. A news alert.
BREAKING: SILAS GRAVES ANNOUNCES DEATH OF LUCIAN GRAVES. CLOSED CASKET CEREMONY TO BE HELD TOMORROW.
“He’s flushing him out,” Skye whispered.
Silas knew Lucian wasn’t dead. He was daring him to show his face.
She dialed Alistair. “Get the car. We’re going to the safe house. Lucian needs to see this.”
The safe house was a bunker disguised as a mid-century modern cottage in the hills.
Alistair was pacing the living room, cleaning a semi-automatic rifle. The sharp smell of gun oil hung in the air.
“He’s in the back,” Alistair said as Skye entered. “He saw the news.”