Chapter 1223
Drake pushed himself up to his feet, unable to stop himself from staring at her a moment longer.
While she was on the phone, the softness in her eyes had been completely genuine.
It was a jarring contrast to the ruthless killing machine that had dominated the garage just moments ago. It was like looking at two completely different people. Especially that deadpan, affectionate “Love you too, Mom p>
It was inexplicably… kind of cute.
But wait.
He had caught snippets of the woman’s voice through the phone’s speaker.
For some reason, it sounded… really familiar?
Like he had heard that exact cadence before.
Before he could dwell on the thought, Serena slipped her phone away, pulled her hood up, and turned to leave. She clearly had no intention of lingering.
Drake watched her back for two seconds.
He abruptly straightened his spine, pushing past the agonizing pain in his ribs, and planted his boots firmly.
Facing her retreating figure, he snapped off a flawless, crisp military salute.
“Thank you. For tonight p>
It was the ultimate sign of respect an Elyndorian soldier could give to a superior warrior.
And a sincere debt of gratitude for saving their lives.
Serena didn’t break her stride, merely offering a lazy wave over her shoulder. “Don’t mention it p>
“I only pulled you out of the fire because you wear the Elyndorian flag p>
With that, she disappeared into the shadows of the exit ramp.
Drake wanted to call out and ask for her name, but she was already gone.
Her dark silhouette melted perfectly into the night.
He stood in silence, staring at the empty ramp for a long time.
“Captain,” Wolf finally broke the quiet, awe heavily lacing his words. “Who… who exactly is that girl p>
“She’s a goddamn phantom p>
“I don’t know,” Drake murmured, the unmistakable thrill of discovering a diamond in the tough burning in his chest. “But her combat instincts… power p>
her
“With that kind of talent and nerve p>
“If we could recruit her into the national command, into the special forces… she
would be the sharpest blade in Elyndor’s arsenal p>
The operatives nodded in rapid agreement.
No one could argue with that.
They had just witnessed what true, unadulterated power looked like.
Pushing his excitement aside, Drake raised a hand and barked out orders. “Wrap it up p>
“Bind the Severian. Haul these Mutated Augment corpses back to the extraction point-the military research division is going to want to dissect every inch of them content
“And one more thing p>
Drake’s gaze turned razor-sharp as he surveyed the devastated garage. “Scrub this
site completely. Erase every trace that we were ever here p>
He paused, his voice dropping an octave. “That girl is an Elyndorian student representing our country in a global academic tournament. This competition is a matter of national
pride w
cannot allow our covert op
to put a target on her back.net
“I want this place sterilized p>
“Yes, sir!” the squad barked in unison, immediately moving to execute the order.
Drake secured the black metal lockbox and slipped out of the tech center, making a beeline to a secure drop point to offload the classified intel.
Not long after he pulled onto the highway, his personal, encrypted phone vibrated.
Drake glanced down at the dashboard.
The caller ID simply read: Home.
He blinked in surprise.
His family knew he was almost always deployed overseas on covert operations. They rarely, if ever, initiated contact.
He picked up the phone and hit answer.
In a split second, the lethal, blood-soaked aura of the special forces commander completely vanished.
His shoulders dropped, and he let out a long breath.
“Mom,” he answered, his deep voice softening into something entirely domestic.
“Jerrick, are you running an operation in Severia right now?” Catherine’s warm voice came through the line.
Jerrick froze.