SCORNED EX WIFE Queen Of Ashes (Camille and Stefan)

Chapter 169

Rain pelted the black waters of Cedar Lake as Alexander and Stefan crouched in the underbrush. The angry sky rumbled above them, lightning flashing in the distance. Through night-vision goggles, Alexander scanned the cabin that held Camille.

What had once been a rustic family retreat now resembled a fortress. Motion sensors dotted the tree line. Cameras swept the property in careful arcs. Two men with rifles patrolled the perimeter, their movements precise and military.

"She's turned it into a damn compound," Alexander whispered, his jaw tight with tension.

Stefan wiped rain from his face. "Rose never does anything halfway."

They'd left the boats hidden behind the split pine tree Margaret had called the "twin tree," the water team of six men now spread through the woods. The road team waited on the other side of the property, ready for Alexander's signal.

"Talk me through it again," Alexander said, his voice barely audible over the rain. "Every entrance. Every weak point."

Stefan closed his eyes, picturing the cabin he'd never visited but had heard described so many times.

"Front door faces the road. Back door opens to the lake. There's a cellar entrance on the east side, hidden under a fake rock garden." His hands shook as he pointed. "Kitchen window has a broken lock, or it did when the Lewis family owned it. Margaret always complained about it letting in cold air."

Alexander relayed the information through his earpiece to the teams. The rain grew heavier, a blessing that muffled their approach and blinded the cameras.

A guard passed just fifteen feet from their position. Alexander tensed, hand moving to his weapon, but the man continued his patrol, unaware of their presence.

"Six minutes until the road team creates their distraction," Alexander murmured. "Then we move."

Stefan nodded, clutching the small fishing lure Margaret had given him. The wood felt rough against his palm, a connection to a time when Camille had been happy, before he and Rose had destroyed everything.

Thunder crashed overhead as lightning lit the sky. In the brief flash, Stefan saw Alexander's face, not the controlled businessman he knew, but something primal and dangerous.

"If anything happens to her..." Alexander's words trailed off.

"It won't," Stefan said, trying to believe it himself.

Alexander checked his watch. "Two minutes. Jason, position report."

"East side secure," came the whispered reply through their earpieces. "We've identified three motion sensors and a trip wire. All disabled."

"West team?"

"In position. Guard approaching. Hold."

Tense seconds ticked by. Rain drummed against the leaves sheltering them.

"Guard passed. West side ready."

Alexander turned to Stefan. "You stay behind me at all times. If I say run, you run. If I say hide, you hide. No heroics."

Stefan wanted to argue, but the steel in Alexander's eyes stopped him. This was a side of Alexander Pierce that few ever saw-the man beneath the tailored suits and boardroom smiles.

"Thirty seconds," Alexander said.

Stefan tucked the lure safely in his pocket and checked his own equipment one last time. Unlike the others, he carried no weapon. Alexander had been clear about that.

exterior cellar entrance." "That's our way in," Alexander said. "Road team, begin distraction on my mark." The seconds stretched like hours. Stefan's heart hammered in his chest, a mixture of fear and determination

"Mark."

the distance, an explosion rocked the night. A moment later, a plume of fire rose above the treeline

Alexander signaled, and they were moving through the

stories, a narrow deer trail that led to the old stone garden. The fire burned

report," Alexander

moving toward the road. Main

stone garden, now overgrown but still recognizable. Stefan

"There."

Two men stepped forward, shifting the heavy stone

Jason, checking

his weapon. "I'll take point. Stefan, you stay here

crackle of static cut through their

Multiple armed tangos

has backup." He turned to Jason.

by two of his

came Alexander's voice. "Stefan,

into a dimly lit storage area. A

to a metal door across the room. "Thermal shows two heat signatures

gunfire echoed in the

team falling back to secondary position," reported the team leader. "We've got at least

cursed under his breath. "She was

have surprise on this side," Jason reminded him. "They're

nodded. "Stack up. Breach on

around the door. Stefan pressed

suddenly, ear pressed to the door.

A female voice, Rose's voice came through faintly. "They've found us. I don't know how, but they're here." A pause. "No, I'm moving to Plan B. Get the boat

device against the door. A tiny screen lit up, showing a thermal image of the room beyond. Two figures, one

whispered. "Rose is

urgent reports. Their teams had discovered more than just guards the entire property had been rigged with motion-activated defenses. Hidden cameras. Pressure plates. Trip wires

what looks like explosives wired to the foundation," reported a team member from the west side.

blood ran cold. Rose wasn't just hiding, she'd prepared

routes. Always. Margaret said she used to panic if she didn't know

"Check for hidden exits," he

room, they could hear Rose's voice growing more agitated. "I don't care what it takes. I'll

beep echoed through the door, followed by a mechanical sound, something sliding

lake," reported the team

decision. "Change of plans. We breach now, before she

readied for entry. Whatever lay

"Go!" Alexander ordered.

as the team rushed

with computer monitors displaying every angle of the property. In the center sat a chair with cut ropes hanging from its

Alexander's men, sweeping the room. "No targets!" Alexander strode to the

noticed a hidden panel standing ajar in the back wall. "There!

the opening, peering into a narrow tunnel lit by emergency lights. "They've moved

men rushing toward the lake, taking defensive positions