Nathan glanced at his phone.
"I'm supposed to be at the orphanage now," he muttered. "You guys take the jeep."
He broke away as the others departed.
At Aid, tension cracked the room like thunder. Robert's voice trembled with anger.
"Our last hope... gone."
"I didn't know Aid would be stolen. We signed out, fully," Evan said defensively.
"You wiped Paige's memory, Evan. Hers was needed—not yours!" Robert shot back.
Natasha's voice cracked, bitter. "So all those years of searching, and we find her—only to lose her again? If we hadn't been trained to rely on Aid or Paige in every mission, we wouldn't be in this mess."
"You still have each other," Evan said, crossing his arms. "You can fight. You're trained."
"You think this is just about fighting?" Robert snapped. "We're guarding a man—clever but fragile. One wrong move, one traumatic trigger, and he might not survive. We can't just tell him someone's trying to kill him."
"And yet you expect my sister—who's been through hell herself—to protect him blindly?" Evan said. "Nathan's trauma is old; he's still functional. But Vicky… my sister is barely holding on. She's beyond repair. So please—train, prepare, win. But don't push this on her."
"I'm sorry, Evan, but—"
"But nothing," Evan cut him off. His tone was ice.
"Guys…" Natasha said, trying to mediate. "Sir Victor trained us not to play the blame game."
"What are you getting at?" Robert asked.
"If Vicky has no memory but still acts like Paige—if she shows any of her qualities—shouldn't we reconsider?"
Evan blinked. "What do you mean?"
"Does she ever act like Paige?" Natasha asked. "Instinct to protect, to fight, to think like a spy?"
Evan hesitated. Images came to mind—Vicky speaking of dreams where she was saving people, flashes of violence, rage, precision…
"No," he said flatly. "She's just Vicky. There's no other personality."
"I think we're out of options," Robert said, eyeing Evan carefully.
"What does that mean?" Evan narrowed his eyes.
Robert pulled out a small vial. Aid Sylum. A classified neuro-trigger compound that reactivates latent memories in Aid agents.
"No," Evan said, stepping back. "Absolutely not."
"So we all die? Nathan dies? We get arrested?" Robert raised his voice.
"We cannot bring Paige back," Evan said.
"Why?" Natasha asked gently.
"Because Paige is not Vicky. Vicky is sweet, kind, gives people second chances—human. But Paige? Paige watched our father die, helpless, broken. That girl was forged in vengeance. She swore to kill everyone involved… including you two. That's why I wiped her memory."
Natasha turned pale. "So… if she remembered, I'd already be dead?"
"Exactly," Evan said. "To her, our father's death would be fresh. She'd come for blood. And Aid… all of Aid… would burn."
A silence fell over them like a storm cloud.
"What now?" Natasha asked.
Just then, the door burst open.
"Guys! I think… Vicky is Aid!" Ruben blurted, breathless. Eyes wide, wild.
All heads turned.
"I didn't realize you had company," he said upon spotting Evan, then hesitated to leave.
"Sit," Roberts said. "Introduce yourself. Evan, meet Ruben."
Ruben nodded. "Vicky is Paige. I was right all along!"
"Why do you think that?" Roberts asked.
"Wait—how do you even know her?" Evan interjected.
"I'll answer him first," Ruben said.
He recounted everything from the Khomasdal incident, every detail. Evan shook his head in disbelief.
"That's impossible. She's on medication. She shouldn't even be able to function like that."
"No matter what the world throws at you," Robert said, "your true identity always finds a way to rise."
"No…" Evan whispered. The denial was louder than any scream.
"So now you've got Ruben to protect Nathan," Evan said stiffly. "Keep him safe."
"Right. Except…" Roberts sighed. "Last night, Nathan almost died. Under Ruben's watch. They strike without warning. Ruben can't do this alone."
"Then we'll need to protect her too," Natasha added. "They'll go after Vicky first to weaken Nathan."
"What if we test Vicky?" Roberts proposed.
"Test?" Ruben asked.
Evan's eyes narrowed. An idea flickered behind them like lightning.