Page 171 of Shadowed Sins: Nitro

I stop pacing, turning back to the team. "So someone's been guardian angel-ing us this whole time? Making sure our operations succeed?"

"Or manipulating us." Cole's strategic paranoia kicks in. "Every success we celebrated, every close call that went our way..."

The room falls quiet except for the hum of electronics and the sound of my heart hammering against my ribs.

The silence stretches until Vanessa clicks deeper into the folder structure. Her fingers pause over a subfolder marked with corporate logos I don't recognize.

"Wait." She leans closer to her screen. "This encryption signature... I've seen this before."

She opens another window, pulling up archived files. My restless energy shifts into hyperfocus as she navigates through case folders.

The same methodical way I break down racing lines. Every detail matters.

"Here." Vanessa's voice gets tight. "From Alina's kidnapping."

Alina moves from her position near the door, crossing to stand behind Vanessa's chair. Her sharp intake of breath cuts through the server hum.

"Oh my god. The meeting before my kidnapping..."

I stop pacing and turn toward them. Alina's face has gone pale.

Cole shifts his weight, moving closer to the workstation. "The fake Simon. Can you describe him?"

"Brown hair, average height..." Alina shakes her head, frustration creeping into her voice. "After the kidnapping, everything's fuzzy."

"I tried tracking him." Cole's strategic mind engages, his tone becoming more analytical. "Professional counter-surveillance. He knew exactly how to stay invisible."

Vanessa pulls up comparison windows, digital fingerprints scrolling across multiple monitors. "The encryption patterns match. Same signature, same methodology."

I run both hands through my hair, my brain trying to process the connections forming.

Someone's been playing chess while we thought we were playing checkers.

"Someone was feeding us intel from inside the operation." The words taste bitter as I say them. "Every successful mission, every piece of intelligence that came at exactly the right time..."

Asher moves away from the far wall, positioning himself where he can see both the screens and the door. "How long has this been going on?"

Kade circles behind the chairs, his command presence filling the room even as questions multiply. "We're being positioned for something bigger."

Mira takes a step closer to me, her voice cutting through my scattered thoughts. "The question is whether they're protecting us or using us."

Or both.

Cole stops his analysis, turning to face the group. "If someone's been manipulating our operations for months..."

"Then Roman's disappearance might not be what we think it is." I can't keep the edge out of my voice. "Either he found out about this and got taken, or..."

"Or he's part of it." Asher finishes the thought none of us want to voice.

The possibility hits like a physical blow. Roman, alive and orchestrating our missions from the shadows. Roman, letting me spiral into gambling addiction while he pulled strings behind the scenes.

I start pacing again, my feet finding that familiar rhythm between the server racks. The confined space makes the betrayal feel sharper, more concentrated.

"Seven months of thinking he was dead." My voice cracks despite my best efforts. "Seven months of fighting every trigger he used to help me manage."

Vanessa's fingers fly across her keyboard, opening more files. "There's communication logs here. Encrypted, but I might be able to..."

"Do it." Kade's command cuts through the tension. "We need to know who we've been working for."