Chapter 18
"He is not your son!" Claire’s voice rang out from behind the heavy oak desk, cold, measured, and utterly fearless. "He is mine!"
Julian signaled his remaining two operatives to flank her position. They moved silently across the marble floor, their weapons trained on the desk. But Claire was already a step ahead. She deployed a localized flashbang grenade, rolling it smoothly across the polished stone.
The blinding, brilliant white light detonated, completely blinding Julian's men. Claire surged upward, vaulting over the desk with deeply feminine, lethal agility. She discharged her weapon rapidly, neutralizing the remaining operatives before their vision could even clear.
Julian fired blindly, a bullet grazing the fabric of Claire's tactical vest. She rolled gracefully behind a secondary marble column, her breathing perfectly even, her fair skin glowing with the exertion of the fight.
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Julian stood alone in the center of the ruined penthouse, surrounded by the bodies of his elite strike team. He lowered his weapon slightly, his handsome, angular face twisting into a mask of pure, sociopathic rage.
"You have gotten better, Claire," Julian murmured, his deep voice vibrating through the room. "But you are still just my student. Step out into the light."
