The first gunshot shattered the quiet of the forest. Glass exploded inward as a bullet tore through the safe house window, spraying shards across the floor. Stella barely had time to react before Ethan grabbed her arm and pulled her down. "Move!" he ordered. Her heart slammed violently against her ribs as he dragged her toward the back door. The roar of engines outside grew louder, headlights cutting through the trees like blades of white light. "They're here already?" Stella gasped. "They've been closer than we thought." Another shot rang out. The wooden wall beside the door splintered. Ethan shoved the back door open and pushed Stella outside into the cold night air. The forest was thick and dark, the ground still damp from the earlier rain. "Run toward the trees," he said quickly. "Stay low." "What about you?" "I'll be right behind you."
That didn't sound convincing. "Ethan—" "Go!" There was no time to argue. Stella ran. Branches snapped beneath her shoes as she pushed through the brush, her lungs burning with cold air. Behind her, she heard Ethan fire twice in quick succession. Then shouting. Men's voices. They were definitely being hunted. A beam of light suddenly cut through the darkness behind her. "Over there!" Stella's stomach dropped. She ran faster. Her mind raced wildly. Just days ago, her biggest thrill had been exploring abandoned cliffs and chasing adrenaline. Now armed men were hunting her through a forest. And somehow, her name was tied to something called Helix. A hand suddenly grabbed her wrist. Stella almost screamed— But Ethan pulled her behind a thick cluster of trees. "Quiet," he whispered. They crouched together in the shadows as two men ran past their position, flashlights sweeping the forest floor. Stella held her breath. The men disappeared deeper into the trees. Only then did Ethan slowly release her arm. Her heart was still racing. "How many are there?" she whispered. "At least six." "Six?" He nodded grimly. "That's just the ones I saw." Stella ran a hand through her hair. "This keeps getting worse." "Yes." "Do you have a plan?" "Working on it." That answer didn't inspire confidence. A distant voice suddenly echoed through the forest. "Spread out! Don't let them reach the road!" Stella's pulse spiked. "They're surrounding us." Ethan glanced toward the hill rising behind them. "There's a trail about half a mile from here." "How do you know that?" "I chose this safe house." "Right," she muttered. "Because your life apparently requires multiple escape routes." He gave her a brief, humorless smile. "Exactly." Another flashlight beam cut through the trees nearby. Ethan grabbed her hand again. "Time to move." They slipped through the forest carefully now, moving quietly between the trees. But Stella's mind wasn't focused on the chase. It was stuck on what they had discovered minutes ago. The spiral birthmark. Helix. Her adoption. "Ethan," she whispered as they walked quickly uphill. "Not now." "Yes now." He sighed. "What?" "If Helix is connected to me… and my birthmark matches the symbol you saw…" "Then someone marked you from birth." The idea made her skin crawl. "Why would anyone do that?" "I don't know yet." "But you suspect something." "Yes." "What?" Ethan hesitated. "Helix wasn't just a project name." Stella frowned. "What else was it?" "A genetic program." She stopped walking. "A what?" Ethan turned back toward her. "The files suggested Helix had something to do with… engineering certain people." Stella stared at him. "You're saying I was… engineered?" "I'm saying someone might have designed your existence for a reason." Her mind spun. "That's insane." "Maybe." "But the birthmark, the file, the list…" "It all points somewhere," he finished quietly. Before Stella could respond— A gunshot cracked through the trees. The bark of a nearby trunk exploded. "They found us!" she gasped. Ethan pulled her forward again. "Run!" They burst through the final line of trees and reached a narrow dirt trail cutting through the hillside. Moonlight broke through the clouds, illuminating the path ahead. But relief lasted only seconds. Because a black SUV suddenly rolled onto the trail from the opposite direction. Headlights blazing. Stella froze. "Ethan…" He saw it too. The vehicle stopped. The driver's door opened slowly. A tall figure stepped out. A woman. Even from a distance, Stella could see something unsettling about the way she moved—calm, controlled, almost predatory. The woman lifted a small pistol casually. Her voice carried clearly through the quiet forest. "Well," she said coolly, "this saves us a lot of searching." Ethan stepped slightly in front of Stella. The woman's eyes shifted between them. Then she smiled faintly. "I finally found you, Ethan." His voice dropped dangerously low. "Leave her out of this." The woman tilted her head. "That's impossible." Her gaze settled on Stella now. Sharp. Curious. Almost amused. "So," she said softly, "this is the girl connected to Helix." Stella's stomach dropped. The woman smiled wider. "You have no idea what you really are, do you?" Ethan's voice hardened. "Don't say another word." The woman laughed quietly. "Oh Ethan… she deserves to know." Her eyes gleamed in the moonlight. "After all… she's the reason this entire operation began."