The Cipher in the Scars

Chapter 2: Concrete and Cyanide

They blew through the diner’s kitchen just as the front windows shattered into a rain of diamond glass. Vesper led Henrik down a labyrinth of wet, narrow alleys. Heavy combat boots echoed behind them, fast and synchronized. These weren’t street thugs; they were high-end corporate wetwork.

Vesper pulled a flashbang from her jacket, cooked it for a split second, and dropped it behind a dumpster. Bang. A blinding white flash washed over the brick walls, followed by choked screams.

She spun around, drew her silenced 9mm, and fired twice. Two bodies dropped into the slush. The third assassin lunged from the shadows, a titanium combat knife aimed at her throat. Vesper blocked with her left arm; the blade scraped loudly against the cybernetic sleeve, throwing sparks.

Using the assassin’s momentum, she pivoted, drove her elbow into his sternum, and swept his legs. He hit the concrete hard. Before she could interrogate him, the man bit down on his collar. A convulsion, a puff of bitter almond scent, and his eyes rolled back.

“Cyanide tooth,” Vesper muttered, wiping a smear of grease from her jacket. She searched his pockets and pulled out a encrypted burner phone. The screen displayed a single, real-time tracking map.

The tracking dot was pinned directly onto Henrik’s apartment.