Hours later, night fell over the glittering waters of Monte Carlo. The Elysium floated two miles off the coast, a lit-up titan of luxury and crime. Dozens of sleek tenders ferried masked guests in formal gowns and tuxedos across the black water.
Dressed in a breathtaking silver evening dress with a matching Venetian mask, Nora stepped off the tender onto the lowered deck of the mega-yacht. Hidden beneath the silk folds of her dress were a concealed firearm and a digital signal jammer.
As she walked up the grand staircase into the ship's opulent main ballroom, her earpiece buzzed softly with Adrian's voice from high above the clouds.
"Nora, I am in position above the drop zone. Do you have eyes on Vance?"
Nora scanned the room full of masked elites, her heart beating in a calm, steady rhythm. Then, on the upper VIP mezzanine, she saw him—an older man with silver hair, a scarred face, and a tailored suit, sipping champagne alongside two armed bodyguards.
"I have eyes on the target," Nora whispered, her lips curving into a cold, lethal smile. "Let the auction begin."
The grand salon of the Elysium echoed with classical music, soft clinking champagne flutes, and low, sinister chatter. Men and women wearing ornate lace and gold Venetian masks circulated through the velvet-lined room, bidding on illegal weapons contracts, stolen state intelligence, and human trafficking routes.
Nora moved through the crowd with captivating elegance. She blended seamlessly into the sea of wealth, but her sharp eyes remained locked on the VIP balcony where Marcus Vance held court. Behind him, resting on a pedestal guarded by two heavily armored mercs, was the silver drive containing the mirrored files from Vault 9.
"Adrian, the drive is on the upper level, east side," Nora murmured into her hidden collar mic, raising a glass of champagne to her lips to hide her mouth. "Vance is preparing to present the drive to the highest bidder in ten minutes."
"Understood," Adrian’s voice crackled through the earpiece over the sound of rushing wind. "Ten seconds to drop. Ethan, status?"
"In position beneath the stern, Uncle Adrian," Ethan reported from his silenced speedboat half a mile away. "Thermal imaging shows six guards on the lower deck."
Suddenly, the lights above the helipad on the top deck flashed once as a high-altitude shadow swept silently through the night sky. Adrian executed a perfect stealth parachute landing onto the upper deck of the yacht. Cutting his chute cord instantly, he drew his suppressed weapons and moved like a specter through the darkness, taking down the two roof guards before they could even sound an alarm.
"Top deck cleared," Adrian whispered. "Nora, trigger the distraction."
Nora reached into her evening clutch, pressing the activation button on her portable EMP device.
Instantly, the entire mega-yacht was plunged into total pitch-black darkness. Emergency backup lights flickered, but the main power grid died instantly. Panic erupted through the ballroom as wealthy guests shouted in confusion.
Nora didn't waste a second. She kicked off her high heels, drew her gun from beneath her skirt, and sprinted up the carpeted staircase to the VIP balcony.
Through the chaos, Marcus Vance roared at his guards, "Secure the drive! It's a blackout!"
A guard lunged for the silver drive on the pedestal, but Nora fired two quick shots through the gloom, taking him down instantly. Vance spun around, drawing his golden revolver, his eyes wide with shock as he saw Nora standing before him in the faint amber emergency light.
"Who the hell are you?" Vance snarled.
Nora stepped forward, pulling off her Venetian mask to reveal her cold, striking features. "I am Nora Cole. James Cole's daughter. And your worst nightmare."
Vance’s eyes widened in disbelief. Before he could raise his revolver, a heavy shadow dropped from the skylight above—Adrian Cole smashed through the glass, landing between Vance and Nora, his weapon aimed squarely at Vance's chest.
"Hello, Marcus," Adrian said softly. "It's been fifteen years."
Marcus Vance backed away toward the edge of the VIP balcony, his face twisting into a hideous, bitter grimace. "Adrian... you old dog. You just couldn't stay dead, could you?"
"Neither could you," Adrian replied, his voice deadly steady. "But I intend to correct that mistake tonight."
Vance suddenly slammed his foot down on a concealed hydraulic switch beneath the floorboards. A heavy blast-proof steel partition slammed down between Adrian, Nora, and Vance, cutting off their line of fire.
"Guards! Kill them all!" Vance screamed from behind the steel barrier as alarms blared across the ship.
Mercenaries flooded the ballroom from the lower corridors, opening fire on the balcony. Adrian yanked Nora behind a marble pillar as bullets chipped away at the stone, spraying white dust into the air.
"Ethan! We need an exit route now!" Nora shouted over the deafening gunfire, returning fire over the balcony railing to keep the mercenaries at bay.
"I’m bringing the interceptor boat around to the starboard side!" Ethan shouted back over the radio. "Jump from the secondary deck on my signal!"
Adrian pulled two smoke grenades from his tactical belt, pulled the pins, and hurled them down into the center of the ballroom. Thick grey smoke billowed instantly, blinding the incoming mercenaries and throwing the room into total disarray.
"Nora, grab the drive!" Adrian ordered.
Nora leapt across the fallen guard's body, snatching the silver Vault 9 drive from the pedestal, and secured it in her coat. "Got it!"
"Move!" Adrian barked.
They sprinted through the smoke-filled upper corridor toward the starboard deck. Mercenaries stepped out from side doors, but Adrian and Nora fought as a synchronized, lethal force—Adrian providing brutal cover fire and devastating hand-to-hand strikes, while Nora delivered precise, defensive shots.
Reaching the outer railing of the middle deck, they looked down into the black churning waters thirty feet below. Ethan’s high-powered interceptor boat roared into view, sitting in the waves with its engines screaming.
"Jump!" Adrian shouted.
Together, Adrian and Nora leaped over the railing, plummeting through the night air and crashing onto the padded rear deck of Ethan’s vessel. Ethan immediately slammed the throttles forward, the boat surging away from the mega-yacht just as heavy machine-gun fire tore up the ocean water behind them.
Looking back, Nora saw Marcus Vance standing on the open stern of the Elysium, watching them escape with cold, murderous hatred.