Chapter 7: Elena's Intervention Alexia stood in the quiet hallway of Maya's house, the door still slightly ajar behind her. Maya's face was etched with a raw mixture of grief and renewed anger that Alexia couldn't easily address, let alone solve. The knowledge that the coven had lied about Marcus Chen, classifying him as a rogue when he was clearly affiliated, complicated Alexia's every move. It confirmed Maya's conviction that the organization Alexia now worked for was fundamentally corrupt. Alexia’s phone alarm already alerted her that the car was coming soon. She needed to leave Maya to process this newfound information and prepare for her noon briefing with Dominic. The practical reality of her survival still hinged on fulfilling her contract, even if everything Maya presented undermined the ethical foundation of that employment. As Alexia stepped onto the porch, intending to head back to her apartment, movement across the street caught her attention. A dark sedan was parked two houses down. It wasn't the sleek black vehicle Dominic used, but another model that looked discreetly sturdy. The back door opened. Elena emerged from the car, followed by three other individuals. All wore tactical clothing familiar from the hunter network. Elena looked focused, her earlier frustration replaced by a determined sobriety that Alexia recognized as operational readiness. They moved with a practiced economy of motion, crossing the street diagonally toward Maya's house. Alexia quickly closed Maya's door, hoping her friend stayed safely inside. Elena stopped a few feet away, the three hunters positioning themselves loosely behind her. The air immediately thickened with a different tension than the night before; this was deliberate, planned action. The hunters ignored the quiet suburban street, treating the sidewalk like a staging area. "I intercepted the secure routing for a coven transport," Elena stated without greeting. "The car is headed to your apartment now." Alexia stiffened. Dominic must have sent the transportation request across some networked system the hunters could monitor. "How did you know where I was?" One of the hunters shifted slightly. "We have ways of knowing what matters to coven assets," the hunter said, their voice flat. "We also know about the university group," Elena continued, stepping closer. "Dominic's political complications are transparent. He needs deniable assets to clean up a connected internal problem." Alexia quickly assessed the group. The hunter who spoke, a tall man with a scarred cheek, carried a specialized rifle that looked like it fired modified stakes. Another hunter, a woman with tight braids, held a crossbow. The third hunter, younger and clearly nervous, carried only a pair of silver knives. Alexia recognized the cold, professional efficiency of the operational network. "What do you want, Elena?" Alexia asked, cutting straight to the point. Every minute here pushed closer to the time Dominic's car would arrive. "We want the university vampires eliminated," Elena said. "They violate the compact. Every coven rule breaker accelerates exposure and puts human lives at risk." "That's my assignment," Alexia countered. "I was going to handle them at noon." Elena shook her head. "You handle them under Dominic's direction, providing him political cover. That's collaboration, Alexia. That's working *for* the problem." The scarred hunter stepped forward slightly. "We offer an alternative. Help us eliminate them now. Before they expect it. Before Dominic spins the situation further." Alexia considered the proposition quickly. The thought of taking down the university group, knowing they preyed on students using compulsion, aligned perfectly with her immediate purpose. Doing it with the hunter network accomplished the goal without handing Dominic a political convenience. It was a chance to act on principle, not coercion. "You also found out about the deception," Alexia said, focusing on Elena. "About Marcus Chen in Maya's situation. The coven covered up a murder." Elena simply met her gaze. "The coven is a blight. Collaborating with them is a slow suicide, Alexia. They will use you until you're disposable. Then they'll eliminate you." The hunter network was offering a path away from that pre-established dependence. A single, decisive action with them could disrupt Dominic's plan and potentially earn her network protection. "You eliminate this group with us," Elena elaborated, "and you prove your value outside of Dominic's control structure. The network will offer full protection from the coven, leverage you can take back to Dominic, or a clean break from everything if you want it." Alexia looked back at the house, thinking of Maya's justified anger, the surveillance files documenting every one of her vulnerabilities, and Dominic’s clinical control. Working for the hunters, if only for this one operation, accomplished several things at once. It addressed the immediate threat faster, provided the accountability Maya rightly demanded from someone, and—most crucially—it was an act of defiance against the clinical manipulation documented in Dominic's surveillance files. "Tell me the plan," Alexia said. A flicker of relief crossed Elena's face, quickly masked by professional seriousness. "The group operates from a converted apartment complex near campus, three blocks from the library. We received the building layout from one of our contacts embedded within campus security." "We move immediately," the scarred hunter interjected. "Surprise is the only asset we have against four vampires who expect nothing yet." Elena handed Alexia a small, encrypted tablet displaying a detailed floor plan. The university group occupied the penthouse level, a series of merged apartments in the corner unit. "We go up through the fire escape, breach the main living area, and eliminate all four targets rapidly." "They use compulsion," Alexia reminded them. "We need to move faster than they can suggest anything." Elena nodded. "Our gear includes countermeasures, dampeners for short-range psychic influence. They won't be fully immune, but it buys us precious seconds." Alexia studied the floor plan, visualizing the breach point and the internal layout. The main entrance was complex, requiring a controlled explosion or a master key. The fire escape offered a clear, if exposed, route. "I need my bow," Alexia declared. "It provides range inside the apartment structure, and it will be quieter than your rifle." "Go," Elena instructed. "We hold here. Thirty seconds." Alexia sprinted back across the lawn, quickly unlocked Maya's door, and slipped inside. Maya was still sitting on the couch, staring blankly at the wall, processing the magnitude of the coven's deception. "I need to leave now," Alexia whispered, grabbing her duffel bag containing the collapsible recurve bow and a quiver of new arrows. "I have a chance to take down the university group with Elena's network. Right now." Maya looked up, recognition replacing the blankness. "You're going with them?" "I'm striking on this assignment now, before Dominic can control the narrative," Alexia confirmed. "It’s the only way to retain any autonomy." "Be careful," Maya warned, standing up. The anger was still there, but now tempered by concern for Alexia's safety. "If this goes sideways, Dominic will make you pay." Alexia didn't have time to consider that particular risk. She nodded, secured her bag, and slid out the door, moving with focused speed. She rejoined the hunters instantly. "The clock is running," Elena stated, already moving toward the sedan. "We go hot in ten minutes. We'll brief details during the drive." The sedan sped away quickly, violating several traffic regulations in the process. Alexia reassembled her bow in the cramped back seat while the hunters efficiently discussed their roles. The cramped space felt intensely focused, four people tightly coiled around a shared objective. The scarred hunter, introduced as Marcus—an ironic name Alexia didn't miss—would provide entry from the fire escape after the fifth-floor ascent. The rifle would keep the entrance suppressed until everyone was inside. Alexia would anchor the primary line of attack once inside, using her enhanced capabilities to engage targets within the interior rooms. The younger hunter, named Jace, would secure the hallway, and Elena would oversee the operation, focusing on neutralizing any attempt at communication or escape. "Do not let any of them compel you," Elena instructed, her voice precise above the engine noise. "If you hesitate, you endanger us all." "My abilities include resistance," Alexia confirmed, though she immediately recalled the intense psychic connection she had shared with Dominic. She didn't fully trust her resistance against four trained vampires operating in concert. She relied on speed, not defensive shields. The drive ended abruptly in an alleyway three blocks from the university apartment complex. They exited the vehicle rapidly, the change from confined space to open air a sudden shift in pressure. "Complex is three hundred meters," Elena confirmed, pointing to a ten-story modern building dominating the skyline. "Perimeter appears clear." They moved through the streets, adopting a quick, low profile that bypassed pedestrians without attracting undue attention. Alexia was grateful she hadn't worn her typical camouflage gear, relying on dark civilian clothes instead. The apartment building lobby was empty. Marcus produced a set of lock picks, disabling the security door leading to the fire escape within seconds. The sound was minimal, a tiny metallic *click* swallowed by the city's background noise. "We go up five flights," Elena whispered. "We eliminate the threat on the penthouse level. Alexia, the moment you are inside, you engage the central living area. The group uses it as a gathering space." The ascent up the fire escape was demanding, forcing Alexia to rely on the hunter abilities she barely understood. Her muscles burned, but her body responded with a practiced efficiency that felt inherently right. Marcus took the lead, moving with the quiet grace of someone who routinely scaled buildings in the dark. Jace brought up the rear, his breathing ragged but controlled. They reached the penthouse landing. Marcus carefully checked the window, confirming they were near the main apartment complex entrance. He extended a specialized magnetic tool, securing it to the frame. "Three, two, one," Marcus signaled. The glass gave way silently, the tool absorbing the sound and scattering the shards internally. Marcus slipped through the small opening instantly, followed by Elena. Alexia quickly strung an arrow, checking the reflective silver coating designed to maximize damage against vampire anatomy. Alexia entered the apartment last, the space suddenly huge and silent. The air tasted stale, with an underlying coppery scent of old consumption. They were in the main living space: expensive furniture, state-of-the-art electronics, scattered discarded student IDs on a glass coffee table. The place felt lived-in, a comfortable lair. Elena pointed toward a central corridor. "They're in the adjacent room. Probably resting after a feeding." Marcus positioned himself near the doorway, the rifle held ready. Jace stood back, protecting the entrance. Alexia moved into the center of the room, her bow readying the first shot. "Now," Elena commanded. Marcus kicked the door open, the sound echoing explosively in the quiet apartment. The adjacent room was a large dining area, four figures seated around a long table. They looked up, surprise registering instantly before dissolving into predatory aggression. One of the male vampires immediately focused a look of intense mental suggestion on Alexia. "Sleep," the vampire whispered, his voice resonating deeply in Alexia's mind. The compulsion wave hit Alexia instantly, a suffocating mental weight demanding submission. Her vision swam, the light scattering into painful shards. She pressed back against the influence, relying on pure adrenaline and the inherent rejection of vampire control encoded in her blood. She raised the bow, aiming through the blurring light. "Focus, Alexia!" Elena screamed, firing her own non-lethal projectile toward the controlling vampire. Alexia let the arrow fly, relying purely on instinct. The silver-tipped shaft found its mark, sinking deep into the throat of the vampire who tried to compel her. The compulsion instantly snapped, replaced by the choking, bubbling sound of a creature dying violently. The other three reacted instantly, leaping over the table toward the hunters. Marcus fired rapidly, his modified stakes tearing into the torso of the largest male vampire, dropping him immediately. The last two vampires, a sleek woman and a young man, split their attack. The woman went directly for Elena, moving with blurring speed. The young man attacked Jace, the nervous hunter. Alexia quickly prepared a second arrow, targeting the woman who was engaged in brutal close-quarters combat with Elena. Elena was holding her own, landing sharp blows to pressure points, but the vampire was faster, more powerful. Alexia’s second arrow found the woman's shoulder, throwing her off Elena with a shriek of pain. The woman was not immediately incapacitated, but she turned her glare on Alexia, blood dripping from the wound. Meanwhile, Jace was overwhelmed. The young male vampire sidestepped Jace's frantic silver knives, grabbing the hunter by the neck and slamming him against the wall. The sound of Jace hitting the drywall suggested immediate structural integrity failure. "Focus the last two!" Alexia yelled, reloading the bow rapidly. Marcus repositioned, aiming his rifle, but the vampire engaging Jace moved too quickly, using the hunter's body as a shield. The female vampire, recovering from the shoulder wound, began to move with preternatural speed, dodging into the shadows of the expansive apartment. Alexia fired a third arrow toward the male vampire holding Jace, aiming low for the legs, knowing the silver strike would slow him down. The shot struck the joint between the vampire's hip and thigh. The vampire roared, dropping Jace, who slid unconscious to the floor. The female vampire, seeing her allies downed and herself wounded, made a dash for the closest exit—a balcony door leading to the terrace. "Stop her!" Elena screamed, lunging to intercept. The woman was too fast, however. She smashed through the glass door, disappearing onto the balcony access. They heard the distinctive sound of enhanced speed as she fled the terrace railing, likely escaping across rooftops toward the relative anonymity of the city. Alexia secured a fourth arrow, moving quickly toward the wounded male vampire attempting to drag himself away from the action, toward an internal escape hatch in the floor. Marcus reached him first, however, kicking the vampire over and driving a large wooden stake through his chest with brutal force. The vampire convulsed once, vaporizing into ash almost instantly, leaving only the clothes and a dusting of grey powder. Silence descended heavily on the penthouse apartment. Four hunters stood amidst the wreckage—two vampires neutralized, one wounded and escaped, and one still functional, but with an arrow lodged in her shoulder. Alexia approached the primary target she had hit first; the powerful compulsion vampire. He was dead, the silver arrow having done maximum damage. She looked at the remaining incapacitated female vampire, still struggling to remove the arrow in her shoulder. "Do we eliminate her now?" Alexia asked, indicating the final downed target. Elena walked over, checking Jace for injuries. Jace was groaning, but alive. "She's too wounded to escape quickly. She still has value. The network needs interrogation." Marcus checked the two neutralized targets, confirming their complete elimination. "Two down. One escaped. One captive. Jace needs evacuation." "We move the captive now," Elena ordered. "Alexia, you secure the evidence. We need all the recovered items from the table: IDs, files, any operational data. We need to frame this as an immediate threat neutralization, not a political assassination." Alexia began gathering the scattered identification cards and papers from the coffee table, her mind still replaying the raw intensity of the battle. Her training under Dominic, though brief, had allowed her to react with lethal efficiency. Compulsion resisted, three targets engaged, two successfully eliminated. If she had hesitated, the outcome would have been far worse for the network. While Alexia worked, Marcus and Elena quickly secured the captive female vampire, binding her with specialized cuffs that prevented the transformation necessary for a successful escape. They moved with urgency, aware that the remaining escaped vampire would instantly report the attack to the coven hierarchy. "The escapee—we need to know who she was," Alexia said, collecting the IDs and tucking them into an evidence bag provided by Elena. "She'll run straight to Dominic or someone above him." "That's inevitable," Elena said, helping Marcus support the injured Jace. The other two hunters, including Alexia, would have to handle the load of the captive and the injured man. "We made our move. Now we deal with the consequences. You proved your allegiance, Alexia. You're out of Dominic's control structure now." Alexia looked around the opulent, shattered penthouse. The silence was temporary, the repercussions just beginning. She didn't feel entirely free; she felt exposed, like a pawn who had moved without permission and now waited for the other player to retaliate. They moved quickly to evacuate. Marcus covered the rear, while Elena and Alexia helped support Jace and the bound vampire captive. They descended the fire escape rapidly, the weight of the bodies straining their movements. At the bottom of the fire escape, in the alley, the driver was waiting with the sedan, the trunk open. They loaded Jace and the captive vampire into the back, the urgency mounting. "We need to create immediate distance," Elena said, getting into the front seat. "Alexia, you ride shotgun. Marcus, you watch the rear." The car sped away from the university complex, blending back into the normal flow of traffic. Alexia looked at the evidence bag containing the documents that validated the network’s decision to strike. "Two down," Alexia confirmed, already feeling the exhaustion settling deep into her bones. The adrenaline rush was completely gone, leaving only the ache of exerted muscles and the cold realization of the immense danger she had just embraced. "We regroup at the network safehouse," Elena announced, driving with an almost reckless speed. "You're under network protection now, Alexia. Dominic will start looking for you immediately." Alexia didn't manage to respond. Her phone, which she had kept silent during the operation, suddenly vibrated violently in her pocket. It was an incoming call. The unique number Dominic had provided for direct contact flashed on the screen. Alexia hesitated, looking at Elena. Elena simply nodded, her expression grim. "Answer it. Let him know who you're with." Alexia brought the phone to her ear, the sudden connection to the man she had deliberately defied creating a cold dread in her stomach. "Alexia." Dominic's voice was low, controlled, and utterly devoid of warmth. The casual formality he usually adopted was completely absent. "The escapee from the university apartment contacted me three minutes ago," Dominic stated, his voice a flat recitation of fact. "Two of my assets are eliminated, one is a captive, and the apartment is a crime scene." Alexia maintained her composure, trying to insert minimal information into the strained silence. "They were breaking the rules, Dominic. They needed to be eliminated to protect human and coven secrecy." "That was my assignment," Dominic countered, the control in his voice chillingly absolute. "You moved without authorization. You struck my targets before my briefing. You collaborated with the hunter network against coven interests." "I took action on a known threat," Alexia argued, the scent of the blood and ash still heavy in her nostrils. "I used the intelligence you provided to neutralize the targets." "You breached the contract, Alexia." Dominic's voice was cold. "Attacking my assignment targets before authorization constitutes a breach of contract." He paused, and Alexia could sense the immense power gathering behind his next words. "I gave you protection, resources, and training," Dominic continued, his voice dropping to a dangerous timbre that suggested absolute finality. "I kept the coven masters from eliminating your existence. You repaid that with sabotage and collaboration." The air in the car seemed to shrink around Alexia, the silence of the other hunters irrelevant against the focused rage emanating from the phone. "I am coming to collect you personally," Dominic stated.