Reborn Heart of Steel

When we sobered up and thought about what we were going to do, we had to help Zoe, which would make it nearly impossible to turn back. The new playing field, the new round in the age-old conflict had just begun, and the tensions were higher than before. And somewhere out there, The Raven was waiting for us to take the next step. Speaking about the episode that shocked Chase and me, it is necessary to mention the information concerning Agent Harris. For days we get through our lives in a haze where every sudden noise and every conversation has us on edge. They say that when you hear the fluttering of a raven, you will die; the presence of The Raven cast a shadow over everything so that we could not give it our full attention. I remember we were at our regular table in the school’s cafeteria, trying to make the best of cafeteria lunch, which for the most part neither of us was very fond of, when Zoe joined us. Zoe was a rather quite girl in our class, a person who we never took our time to notice in the past. But as she poses today, there is a determined look in her eyes which causes both of us to sit up straighter. “I have to discuss something with you,” she whispered, looking around as though there were eavesdroppers all over the place. There was a pause for a moment “No not here I think we can after school. It is quite urgent. ” I glanced at Chase and averted my gaze back to the table in front of me. Given all that we had been through, any approach other than a direct one made our gum’s teal. However, it felt like there was something wrong with the way she behaved, so there was something in Zoe’s demeanor that even made us stop. “What’s this all about?” I asked and was rather surprised. My voice was steady. She leaned in closer. She was obviously in a world of hown, ‘It’s about The Raven,’ she whispered. “Sorry to cut in, but I heard something which can be useful to you. ” My heart beat faster before I thought of it. They didn’t look happy. Why was she aware of our engagement? Did The Raven send her? Or was this an actual display of the altruism that is presented in this show? “Lets meet at the swings in Westside park besides the Gym at 4,” Mia declared while standing up, which we could not say yes because. “Come alone. ” After she left, Chase and I remained seated and wordless. That there could be new information, frankly speaking, was tempting, but the stakes were high. “Well… What do you think?” I heard Chase whispering. I shook my head. “I do not know. It seems like a trap, but… “But if it’s not, we can’t afford to ignore it. ” I added, knowing this was certainly true for the team. The rest of the school day felt like hours thinking and wondering what might happen next. All this debate could go on for the entire day as we were yet to make any decision once the last bell was heard. “Perhaps, we should inform Agent Harris,” I said this as we were walking back home. They were coming out nervously from my mouth, realizing what we had witnessed.

Chase’s face darkened. “After what we saw? How can we trust him?”

“But if we don’t tell him, and this turns out to be something big, we’re right back where we started keeping secrets and getting in over our heads,” I argued.

We went back and forth like this for hours, weighing the pros and cons of each option. Trusting Zoe could lead us into another of The Raven’s traps, potentially endangering not just ourselves but our families. But if her information was genuine, it could be the break we desperately needed.

On the other hand, involving Agent Harris felt like a betrayal of everything we’d been through. The memory of him accepting that envelope in the alley haunted me. But he was still our best link to official channels, and if we were ever going to bring The Raven down, we’d need that kind of support.

As the clock ticked closer to 4, the pressure to make a decision mounted.

“We’re running out of time,” Chase said, pacing back and forth in my room. “If we’re going to meet Mia, we need to leave now.”

I chewed my lip, torn between curiosity and caution. “What if we split up?” I suggested suddenly. “One of us meets Zoe, the other talks to Agent Harris. That way, we’re covering all our bases.”

Chase considered this for a moment, then nodded slowly. “It’s risky, but it might be our best option. I’ll meet Zoe. You talk to Harris.”All text © NôvelD(r)a'ma.Org.

My stomach churned at the thought of facing Agent Harris alone, knowing what we’d seen. But I knew Chase was right of the two of us, he was better equipped to handle a potential trap.

We quickly hashed out a plan. Chase would meet Zoe at the playground, while I would call Agent Harris and arrange to meet him at a public cafe. We’d both keep our phones on and ready to send an SOS if anything went wrong. At the end of the day, before we parted ways, Chase embraced me and held me tightly. “Be careful,” he whispered. Harris was the last person I expected to be in a position of power over her, but he’d be important in helping her escape if she needed to. “Hey Bri … if you ever feel uncomfortable around Harris, if something doesn’t feel right a-tall, run away, do you hear me?” I just nodded my head and couldn’t help feeling my throat choked up. “You too, sir!” Il urged him warmly, her eyes reflecting the concern she felt when saying those words. More to that, we changed our positions and left each other to head back to our intended goals. It took me ages to get to the cafe where I was to meet Agent Harris; something that seemed like an eternity to me. Each car that went past made me jump; each dark street a possible place to hide one of The Raven’s thugs. Finally, I got there and there sitting at a corner table was Harris with two cups of coffee. I realized he had more bags under his eyes than any other man I had met, and the skin around his mouth seemed to be pulled in a little too much. “Brianna,” he said as I joined him: “Honestly, I never expected that you were going to call me back, and I have to say that we have decided that you have to leave this investigation alone. ” I inhaled deeply to prepare myself for what I knew was coming. “Well, I have to go,” was what I managed to come up. “We received some tips regarding The Raven. ” Harris’s eyebrows shot up. “Who Information?” “What kind of information?” I paused for a moment, trying to mentally analyze his features and determining if he was telling the truth or not. “I won’t tell you that until you answer something for me first, Agent Harris. ” I typed out carefully, “Are you working with The Raven?” The question floated in the space between us, full of suggestion lies. Harris’s face went from surprise, to anger, and… was that relief? “Brianna,” he whispered while making sure his threatening tone was coming through. “Listen to me very carefully, the situation is far worse than you think, there are things happening, and I can’t explain them to you right now, but I swear that everything I’ve done has been towards the aim of dismantling The Phoenix Organization. ” My mind raced, trying to reconcile his words with what we’d seen. “But we saw you,” I blurted out. “In the alley. You took money from one of his men.”

Harris closed his eyes for a moment, looking pained. “What you saw… it wasn’t what it looked like. I’m operating deep undercover, Brianna. Sometimes that means doing things that look questionable from the outside. But I swear to you, I’m not corrupt. I’m not working for The Raven.”

I wanted to believe him. Everything in me wanted to trust that the man who had been our ally from the beginning was still on our side. But The Raven’s warnings echoed in my head, reminding me of the stakes if we made the wrong choice.

“I want to believe you,” I said finally. “But after everything that’s happened… I don’t know if I can.”

Harris leaned forward, his eyes intense. “Then let me prove it to you. Tell me about this person who approached you. Let me help you verify their information. If it checks out, it could be the break we’ve been waiting for.”

As I opened my mouth to respond, my phone buzzed in my pocket. My heart leapt into my throat as I pulled it out, expecting to see an SOS from Chase. Instead, it was a message from an unknown number:

“Your friend is very trusting, little bird. Perhaps too trusting. Tick tock. Time to choose a side.”

Attached was a photo that made my blood run cold Chase, sitting on a swing in Westside Park, deep in conversation with Zoe. And lurking in the background, partially hidden behind a tree, was a figure in a dark suit, watching them.

I looked up at Agent Harris, my mind spinning. The choice before me felt impossible. Trust Harris and potentially walk into a trap? Or keep the information to myself and potentially miss our only chance to bring The Raven down?

As Harris watched me expectantly, waiting for my decision, I realized with a sinking feeling that whatever choice I made in the next few moments could change everything for better or for worse.