Ebony Fox''s brow furrowed, every nerve in her body on high alert. The enemies she had made were not ordinary people; they were ruthless. Her three brothers were here, and more importantly, Juniper was on her way. She couldn''t let them be put in any danger.


    "Assassins," she hissed, ncing out the window. Sure enough, an unfamiliar car was parked in a corner. "They must be my enemies, here for me.”


    "Assassins? How many are there?" Jimmie, though internally panicking, kept his voice calm. "How long can you hold them off? I''ll call for backup!”


    He thought Shanley''s men from Sigma Network could get there quickly.


    "There''s no time!" Ebony Fox pulled back from the window, her face pale. She scanned the room and spotted a discarded metal crate in the corner. "They''re after me; they probably haven''t seen you. You three hide in there. I''ll handle the rest." The crate was justrge enough to hide three people.


    "What?" Jimmie''s brow locked. “You want three grown men to hide while you face them alone?"


    "I''m a special forces soldier," Ebony Fox replied without hesitation, her tone deadly serious. Her three brothers looked like they couldn''t handle a real fight and would only end up getting in her way.


    "What does that matter?" Jimmie retorted, grabbing her wrist. "You''re our sister. Since when do brothers let their sister protect them?"


    "Exactly!" Harold chimed in, craning his neck to look outside. "No matter what happens, your brothers will protect you."


    "They dare to make a move in Era City? They clearly don''t know who my brother- inw is!” Melvin brandished a thick metal pipe he''d found, pping it against his palm with a fearless grin. "Bring it on! I''m not a man if I back down!"


    Seeing the three of them standing their ground, hearing their words, Ebony Fox felt something stir within her. A wave of warmth, a feeling she hadn''t experienced in years, spread through her. Were they... worried about her?


    "Thank you." Ebony Fox looked down at the hand Jimmie was holding, her throat tight. “I know you want to protect me, but don''t. Not yet."


    The three brothers stared at her, confused.


    "Can you actually fight?" Ebony Foxid it out for them logically. "If not, my advice is to hide. Otherwise, I''ll be fighting and trying to save you at the same time, which will ill just slows me down


    The three fell silent. They could fight, sure, but their stamina was questionable. "Toote."


    Just as they were talking, the heavy thud of footsteps echoed from the doorway. They had been found.


    "This way!" Ebony Fox kicked open a side door, and the four of them bolted down the adjacent corridor.


    A deafening crash echoed from the


    room they had just left. The spot where they had been standing was riddled with bullets the air thick with the smell of gunpowder.


    Ebony Fox drew a pistol from her hip and returned fire at their pursuers.


    "Look out!" Jimmie yelled, seeing an attacker take aim at his sister. Without thinking, he yanked her toward him.


    A bullet whizzed past her ear, so


    close she could feel the heat. Just a


    fraction of an inch, and it wo


    have


    hit her in the head. Content Belongs


    "Thanks, bro," Ebony Fox said, her voice steady.


    "We''re family. No need for thanks," Jimmie replied with a tight smile.


    "Get down!" Harold shouted, shoving all of them into a nearby room and mming the heavy iron door shut.