Chapter 68

The sharp rapping at the door shattered the morning stillness.

Liam's eyes flew open, immediately darting to Evelyn's serene sleeping form beside him. Careful not to disturb her, he slowly peeled back the covers.

His bare feet touched the cold floorboards.

Moving with practiced stealth, he made his way to the door.

"General Blackwood—" Ryan Sullivan began, but Liam silenced him with a finger to his lips and a warning glare.

Ryan blinked in surprise. Since when had the notoriously brusque general become so... considerate?

Liam glanced back at Evelyn's undisturbed figure before slipping through the doorway, closing it with barely a click.

Ryan's mouth fell open at the uncharacteristic gentleness.

Once outside, Liam kept his voice barely above a whisper. "Do you know what time it is?"

Ryan checked his watch—7:15 AM. The general was usually doing push-ups by now. But he wisely kept that observation to himself. "We located the chemist, sir."

A spark ignited in Liam's dark eyes.

"Give me two minutes," he said, already turning back toward the bedroom.

Ryan stood frozen in the hallway, utterly perplexed. The general's behavior around Evelyn Carter made no sense—if he disliked her so much, why did they keep sharing a bed?

Five minutes later, Liam emerged in full dress uniform, the crisp lines accentuating his broad shoulders as he strode toward the interrogation room.

Inside sat a frail-looking elderly man with wild white hair and thick-rimmed glasses that magnified his tired eyes. After an hour of questioning, he looked ready to collapse—until Liam entered.

The old man immediately straightened in his chair.

"General Blackwood," he rasped, "take the hydronium. I want nothing in return. Just let me live."

Liam picked up the dossier and took the seat opposite. "Dr. Hart, the hydronium is merely the beginning. I want information about 'Wright'—and how to find her."

Benjamin Hart adjusted his glasses with trembling fingers. "Where should I even begin?"

Liam tapped the small black glass vial on the table. "Start with how you obtained this."

"Frederick was my colleague for thirty years. I saved his life during the Solterra incident, and he repaid me with this." Benjamin's voice cracked. "His last gift before they killed him."

"Who's Frederick?"

"M's personal assistant. The only person who ever saw her face." Benjamin swallowed hard. "Now he's gone."

Liam's entire body tensed. "M?"

Ryan immediately flipped open his notebook, pen poised.

Benjamin gave a humorless laugh. "Yes, Cassandra Wright—the genius behind hydronium. A brilliant young woman, barely out of university."

Liam's expression darkened with disbelief. Every lead had pointed to an elderly scientist—not some prodigy girl.

Ryan leaned forward menacingly. "You'd better be telling the truth, old man."

Benjamin adjusted his glasses nervously. "I swear it! I never met M myself, but Frederick spoke of her constantly."

He took a shaky breath before continuing. "Frederick was our institute's top researcher—published groundbreaking papers, won international awards. Yet he resented being assistant to a girl half his age."

Benjamin pointed at the vial. "That's why he stole two samples of hydronium from her lab. Kept one, gave me the other." His fingers trembled around the glass. "Three days later, they found his body floating in the Aldenrian harbor."