Location; Tavara – Sinclair Estate, Private War Room
The war room was unusually silent despite the storm brewing within its walls. High-resolution monitors flickered with financial charts, security feeds, and incoming alerts from global Sinclair branches. In the center, Nora stood like a statue, her hands gripping the back of a chair while her eyes bore into the decrypted documents Damien had recovered in Brazil and finished analyzing.
A name glowed on the screen: Leona Voss.
"She's his daughter?" Nora asked, her voice quiet but sharp enough to cut through steel.
Damien nodded. "Orion Voss kept her identity hidden even from Archer. She's been living under an alias—never used her father's last name officially. But the ledger connects her. Her trust fund was rerouted through the same shell companies Orion used to launder resistance funds."
Nora's father, Kenneth Sinclair, took a deep breath. "She's been on our foundation board for years. She oversaw multiple outreach programs in Africa and Southeast Asia. I handpicked her after she graduated from the London School of Economics."
Nora's eyes didn't leave the screen. "And now she's missing."
"She's not missing," Damien interjected. "She's in hiding. I moved her under shadow ops protection last night. There was an attempted hit on her in São Paulo just hours after we accessed the ledger."
Nora's mother, Eleanora, paled. "Oh my God…"
"She survived," Damien confirmed. "But barely. The assassin was one of Archer's mercenaries. We caught him before he could finish the job. Leona doesn't even know why she's being hunted."
"She doesn't know about Orion?" Kenneth asked.
"She thought he was a disgraced accountant who died in exile. He kept his real life locked away. Until now." Damien tapped a few keys and more files surfaced. "But that's not the only issue. Leona had access to Sinclair Foundation systems. Emails, budgets, travel logs."
"You think Archer used her?" Eleanora asked.
"I think he wanted to," Damien replied. "But I don't believe she was his spy. Orion's whole plan revolved around shielding her. Even now, she's more of a liability to Archer than an asset."
"She's still my cousin," Nora said, finally turning from the screen. Her face was unreadable. "And I'm not leaving her out there alone."
Kenneth stepped closer. "Nora, this isn't the time to be reckless. We don't know who else is watching her. If you go to her—"
"She trusts me. That's the point." Nora's voice carried the icy precision of someone who had made up her mind. "She won't come with a team of strangers. She'll bolt."
"I'll go with her," Damien offered. "We can deploy in stealth mode, fly out tonight. We'll move her before Archer sends someone worse."
"She's in Brazil, right?" Nora asked.
Damien nodded. "Secured location outside Manaus, in the Amazon basin. My team has eyes on the perimeter, but we need to move fast. Archer just deployed someone new to South America—codename: Revenant."
Kenneth's face tensed. "That ghost from the Moscow ops?"
"Worse," Damien said. "This one doesn't just follow orders—he improvises. He takes pleasure in tearing families apart from within. If Revenant reaches her first…"
He didn't finish the sentence.
Nora squared her shoulders. "Then we beat him to it."
A beat passed. Then Kenneth nodded slowly. "You'll need backdoor clearance from Sinclair Aviation. I'll authorize a private jet to Rio. From there, you'll switch to an unmarked military bird."
"And I'll get in touch with Mateo," Damien added. "His contacts in Brazil's interior can supply cover through the jungle if we need a ground escape route."
Eleanora reached for her daughter's hand. "Please, promise me you'll come back safe. Both of you."
"We will," Nora said, gripping her mother's hand gently. "But this isn't just about rescuing Leona. It's about discovering what else Orion didn't tell us. Secrets don't die easily in our world."
As the team dispersed to prepare, Nora lingered in the war room, eyes fixed on her cousin's encrypted profile on the screen. A woman unknowingly caught in a war built by the sins of her father. A mirror, in many ways, of Nora herself.
Behind her, Damien watched her in silence.
"We'll get her out," he said softly. "But be ready for more than you expect. Orion's legacy is far from over."
Nora nodded, the storm in her chest gathering force. "I'm counting on it."