Chapter 3 The Trap

In New York, in the dark alley known as Black Street, the seemingly quiet place was actually the most chaotic part of the city. Here, you could buy any information, find out about the latest arms shipment from the world's largest arms dealer, or get the travel route of royalty. As long as you could pay, you could get any information here.

It was also a hub for selling cocaine, heroin, and other drugs, with frequent murders, shootouts, and debauchery, making this ordinary alley a notorious spot in the underworld, known as Black Street.

Echo stood at the entrance of Black Street, leaning against the dark wall, playing with a lighter. She didn't light it or make any moves, just idly fiddled with it. The dim light reflected off the silver surface of the lighter, casting weak glimmers.

"Here to buy more information?" a sinister voice suddenly spoke behind Echo. A shadow hid in the darkness of the wall, appearing silently.

Without turning around, Echo replied calmly, "I want to know what's been going on with the Theft Organization lately."

"One million."

"Deal," Echo agreed as quickly as the offer was made.

"Follow me." Seeing Echo's prompt agreement, the person turned and led the way, with Echo following closely behind, clearly familiar with the route.

"The Theft Organization recently took on a job..." The cold voice in the dimly lit room made Echo's brow furrow even more deeply.

Strolling through the brightly lit streets of New York, Echo's brow remained furrowed since she left Black Street.

The information she received there was unusually clear. She knew her organization well and knew that no operation was ever so fully disclosed. It seemed like someone wanted to make it an open secret, practically inviting others to walk into a trap. It was as if someone within the organization wanted Skye dead.

Black Street didn't specify who was responsible for the theft, but if it was a woman and one of the top thieves, it had to be either herself or Skye. Stealing from the Dark family's territory was either a way to force her out or a death sentence for Skye. The Dark family was not to be trifled with.

"Damn it," Echo muttered. The heist was set for tomorrow, leaving her no time to prepare.

Should she go or not? Was it true or false? How could she tell? If Skye was involved, how could she remain calm? What had Skye done to end up in the organization's hands, and why was she ordered to steal? It made no sense.

Before dawn, Echo considered her and Skye's habit of striking when people were least prepared. If Skye was involved, she would choose this time. Echo looked up at the sky, decided to take a gamble, and headed out. If Skye was there and she didn't go, she would regret it for the rest of her life.

The financial building's 108th-floor vault held an ancient ruby, recently purchased from France. Its value was comparable to the ruby stolen during their last job, which made Echo think it was Skye's doing since only she and Skye specialized in antiquities.

"I'm not stealing; I'm just looking," Echo told herself, disguising as a staff member and casually entering the financial building, pretending to be a cleaner.

As she nonchalantly wiped the entrance doors, she noticed the cameras had been tampered with, likely Skye's handiwork. Frowning slightly, she naturally moved towards the upper floors.

On the 108th floor, Echo pressed all the elevator buttons before stepping out, as if to make the elevator wait for her.

As she passed the vault door, Echo frowned. It was too easy. There was no guard in sight. Had Skye cleared the area, or was there another reason?

Before she could ponder further, she noticed the slightly ajar vault door. Raising an eyebrow, she realized this was the professional touch of their organization, only recognizable by insiders.

Echo bowed her head and pretended to clean the distant glass, observing carefully.

Click.

The sound was barely audible, but in the silence, Echo heard it clear as day. She clenched her teeth and cursed under her breath.

The vault door, controlled by a timed mechanism, had just closed. It was airtight in there, and if someone didn't open it before work hours, whoever was inside would suffocate.

Echo tightened her fist as the cameras around her slowly started coming back online, their lights blinking back to life. She realized she hadn't planned well enough—she had overestimated the person who'd gone in.

Gritting her teeth, she quickly pressed a button on the watch she wore. It was a compact computer program designed to disrupt all the surveillance systems. With time running short, she couldn't hack into the computer system, so she had to use a strong interference. It would be obvious, but it would also buy her only a little bit of time.

The interference worked, and for a brief moment, the entire building's monitoring system went down. But in that same instant, everyone who was watching the feeds knew that the vault had been breached. They immediately rushed towards the 108th floor.

Click.

The vault door opened easily, but Echo couldn't afford to hesitate.

She shouted into the room, "Skye, get out of there! Wait, what—why are you here?" 

She had expected to see Skye, but instead, it was Doris and her mentor trapped inside.

A trap. The whole thing was a setup.

As soon as Echo saw her mentor, she realized this was a classic "bait and switch" ploy, using her concern for Skye to lure her in.

Seeing Doris smirking and her mentor's dark expression, Echo quickly spun on her heel and bolted.

"Damn Gavin," she muttered to herself. "You'll pay for this someday."

"Echo, you're not getting away this time! This place is sealed tight, where do you think you can run?" Her mentor, second in command of the organization, started shouting threats. But as she followed Echo out, she was met with alarms blaring everywhere, and her face darkened even more.

Echo dodged Doris's kick with a quick sidestep. She wasn't a fighter, but after being Skye's sparring partner for years, she could at least avoid a hit or two.

Seeing her mentor's face turn even darker, Echo couldn't help but chuckle. "You thought you were so clever, didn't you, mentor? But you forgot one thing—Skye is important to me. Did you really think I'd let anything happen to her? Let's see who comes out on top this time!" With that, she turned and darted down the hallway, shouting, "Thief!"

Doris and her mentor's faces turned pale. They had banked on Echo coming to save Skye, but they hadn't expected the bond between the two to be this strong. Using such extreme measures was now backfiring—if they didn't catch Echo before the authorities arrived, they were all in big trouble.

The mentor quickly signaled, and every hidden member of the Theft Organization sprang into action, rushing to capture Echo before anyone else showed up.

This was going to be a real test of their skills.

The thieves were well-prepared, and their gear was way beyond anything Echo had.

Just as it looked like they were about to catch her, the elevator dinged, and security finally showed up.

Echo immediately screamed at the top of her lungs, "Thieves! They're trying to kill me! Help!" She scrambled towards the security guards, half crawling, half running.

In the chaos, Echo's cleaner disguise actually worked in her favor. All the guards, security, and police turned their attention to the thieves, and a bright smile tugged at the corners of Echo's mouth. She took advantage of the confusion, swiftly darting towards the end of the hallway.

But just as she rounded the corner, Echo didn't even have time to react before a pair of arms suddenly blocked her path. She couldn't stop in time and crashed right into them, a strong, overpowering scent flooding her senses.

Her last thought before losing consciousness was, "Damn, got caught in a trap."