Page 11 of Rescuing Ally: Part 2

“Malfor sees the bigger picture,” Harrison replies, voice even. “This isn’t about revenge. It’s about balance. Correction.” He looks at each of us in turn. “All of you are tied to Guardian HRS. To Charlie team. The perfect leverage.”

“You’re using us as bait.” The realization crystallizes in my mind. “To draw them out.”

“Among other things.” His smile doesn’t reach his eyes. “Your value extends beyond mere bait, Miss Collins. Your research has—applications. And Malfor has plans for it.”

Ice spreads through my veins. My quantum containment research. The fusion reactor modifications I smuggled out of Kazakhstan. He wants more than revenge; he wants my brain.

“Where are we going?” I struggle to keep fear from my voice.

“Somewhere secure. Somewhere, your Guardian friends won’t find you until we want them to.”

“Sophia? Violet? The children?” The words scrape raw on the way out.

“They weren’t part of the extraction. Should’ve been.” For the first time, Harrison hesitates. “That’s—a failure I’ll have to answer for.”

Relief crashes through me, followed immediately by calculation. If they’re not here, they must have reached the panic room. They’re alive. Protected. And they can tell Guardian HRS everything they saw.

Another thought grips me—hope wrapped in dread.

“And Max?”

Harrison’s hand drifts unconsciously to his bandaged arm. “Sedated. Not dead.”

I almost smile, visceral satisfaction warming me for a brief moment. Good. Carter would kill this man himself if they killed his dog.

“You made a mistake.” I lean forward despite the pain it sends through my shoulders. “You think you know the Guardians. You think you know what they’re capable of, but you have no idea what happens when you take someone they love.”

“I know exactly what they’re capable of.” His voice hardens. “I’ve studied them for months. Every move. Every weakness.” He gestures around the cargo hold. “And now I have six of those weaknesses right here.”

“Why Stitch?” I challenge, nodding toward the unconscious woman.

Something passes across Harrison’s face—confirmation.

“Malfor doesn’t forget betrayal.”

“Neither do I.” The words emerge like bullets. “And neither will my father. You know what he’ll do to find me. What resources he’ll deploy.”

For a heartbeat, uncertainty shadows his features. Then it’s gone.

“Robert Collins is a businessman,” he dismisses. “When the time comes, he’ll make the practical choice.”

“You don’t know him at all,” I say softly, certainty burning like wildfire. “Not if you believe that.”

Harrison checks his watch, visibly done with this conversation. “We reach the rendezvous in thirty minutes. I suggest you prepare yourself, Miss Collins. It’s going to be a very long and arduous journey.”

I close my eyes, drawing deep on everything I’ve learned from Hank and Gabe. From their training sessions. From their protection.

From their love.

The rational part of my brain knows our chances are microscopic. Six bound women against armed operatives, and a madman waiting at the destination.

But I refuse to be helpless.

I think about quantum entanglement—my research, my life’s work. Particles that once connected remain connected, no matter the distance separating them. Change one, and the other changes instantly. A bond that transcends physical space.

Like me, Hank, and Gabe.

Connected. Entangled. Inseparable.