Chapter 7: The Blackout
The gunshot echoed across the estate.
Then...
Darkness.
Every crystal chandelier went black.
The grand ballroom disappeared into a sea of shadows.
Someone screamed.
Glass shattered somewhere to the left.
For half a second, confusion ruled Blackthorn Manor.
Then years of training took over.
"Protect the family!"
My father's security team moved as one.
Flashlights snapped on, cutting sharp white beams through the darkness.
Four bodyguards surrounded my grandfather.
Another four formed a shield around me as the paramedics carefully lowered me behind an overturned marble table.
The FBI agents drew their weapons.
"Federal agents!"
"Nobody move!"
Nathan's breathing became frantic.
"What the hell is happening?"
No one answered him.
Outside...
Another gunshot.
Then another.
Not aimed at the mansion.
Warning shots.
Deliberate.
The message was clear.
They wanted everyone inside to know they were there.
The emergency generators should have activated within three seconds.
Three seconds passed.
Nothing.
The Sterling security chief frowned.
"They cut the backup system."
"How?"
"It's isolated underground."
My father immediately understood.
"They had inside assistance."
One of the technicians connected a portable monitor to the estate's internal network.
His expression changed instantly.
"Sir."
"What is it?"
"The blackout wasn't caused from outside."
He looked toward Grandfather.
"Someone disabled the generators from the manor's control room."
Nathan shook his head.
"Impossible."
"The control room needs biometric authorization."
The technician looked directly at him.
"It accepted your fingerprint."
Nathan stared.
"My fingerprint?"
"I never went near the control room."
Grandfather spoke quietly.
"They cloned it."
Nathan frowned.
"Can someone do that?"
My father answered.
"If someone has access to a glass you've touched..."
"...or any object carrying a clean print."
Nathan slowly turned toward Celeste.
She looked horrified.
"You think I did it?"
"You handled my office every day!"
"I didn't!"
For the first time...
Nathan genuinely wasn't sure whether to believe her.
Outside, drones buzzed above the trees.
Sterling security launched three reconnaissance drones from armored cases.
Within seconds...
Live infrared images appeared on handheld tablets.
The security chief zoomed in.
"There."
Twenty-three armed individuals.
Moving silently between the trees.
Military discipline.
Military spacing.
No identifying insignia.
Their faces covered.
One thing stood out.
Every one of them wore identical black gloves marked with a silver symbol.
A raven.
Grandfather narrowed his eyes.
"The Raven Unit."
The FBI commander looked surprised.
"They still exist?"
Grandfather nodded once.
"So Blackwood is no longer hiding."
Suddenly...
One of the drones exploded.
The screen filled with static.
Another disappeared.
Then the third.
The security chief lowered the controller.
"They're using anti-drone rifles."
My father looked toward the windows.
"They're professionals."
Inside the ballroom, another problem emerged.
A young FBI agent suddenly collapsed.
His flashlight rolled across the marble floor.
The investigator beside him knelt immediately.
"What happened?"
The medic rushed over.
Seconds later his expression changed.
"He's been poisoned."
Everyone froze.
"What?"
The medic pointed to the agent's neck.
A tiny puncture wound.
Barely visible.
Nathan whispered,
"When?"
No one had seen anyone approach him.
The Sterling technician picked up something from the floor.
A tiny steel dart.
No larger than a sewing needle.
The medic examined it.
His face darkened.
"This isn't meant to kill."
"What does it do?"
He looked up.
"Paralyzes the nervous system."
The FBI commander immediately shouted,
"Check everyone!"
Agents began examining one another under flashlight beams.
No additional wounds.
Whoever fired the dart...
Had done it only once.
And with terrifying precision.
Meanwhile...
In the confusion...
Celeste quietly stepped backward.
One step.
Then another.
She believed no one noticed.
She was wrong.
Mrs. Parker, the elderly housekeeper, watched from across the room.
Her voice rang through the darkness.
"She's running!"
Every flashlight swung toward Celeste.
She froze.
"I wasn't running!"
"You were moving toward the west hallway."
"I was scared!"
The FBI agents surrounded her.
The lead investigator spoke calmly.
"For your own safety..."
"...you're staying with us."
Celeste looked as though she wanted to argue.
Instead...
She lowered her head.
Nathan suddenly looked toward me.
"Evelyn."
His voice was almost pleading.
"Listen to me."
"They aren't here because of me."
I remained silent.
"They're here because of your family."
My father stepped forward.
"And your point?"
Nathan looked directly at him.
"If Blackwood has been watching Sterling for years..."
"...then Evelyn has been their target all along."
The words hung heavily in the air.
Grandfather didn't deny them.
At that moment...
A secure satellite phone rang.
Only three people possessed its encrypted frequency.
Grandfather answered immediately.
"This is William."
Silence.
His expression changed.
My father noticed.
"What happened?"
Grandfather slowly lowered the phone.
"Our London headquarters..."
He paused.
"...has just been attacked."
The room fell silent.
"Casualties?"
"Three security officers."
"The archives were destroyed."
My father's face hardened.
"They're hitting us everywhere."
Grandfather nodded.
"This operation was planned long before tonight."
The Sterling security chief hurried over carrying another tablet.
"Sir."
"We recovered something from the drone footage before it was destroyed."
He enlarged the final frame.
Hidden among the trees...
Stood a single man.
Unlike the others, he wore no mask.
A dark overcoat.
Silver hair.
He appeared to be in his late fifties.
Even through the grainy thermal image...
He seemed to be looking directly toward the mansion.
Toward us.
The security chief whispered,
"Facial recognition is complete."
"Identity?"
He hesitated.
"I don't understand."
"What?"
"The system says..."
"...he died eighteen years ago."
Grandfather took the tablet.
The moment he saw the face...
His grip tightened around his cane.
My father looked over his shoulder.
His eyes widened.
"No..."
"It can't be."
I had never seen fear on my grandfather's face.
Until now.
He whispered a single name.
"Victor."
Nathan frowned.
"Who is Victor?"
Grandfather looked out into the darkness beyond the shattered windows.
"The only man..."
"...who ever betrayed the Sterling family and lived."
Then, as if responding to his name...
A deep voice echoed from powerful speakers hidden somewhere in the forest surrounding Blackthorn Manor.
"William..."
"I've waited thirty years for this reunion."
The voice chuckled.
May you like
"And this time..."
"I'm taking your granddaughter with me."
