Chapter 29: New Dawn

As Rain and Frederick were pulled to safety by his men, Rain struggled against them, her panicked screams lost in the roar of the burning wreckage. The explosion sent shockwaves across the dark waters, and debris rained down like embers from the sky.

"Khai!" Rain's voice was hoarse, raw with desperation as she searched the burning remains of the helicopter. But there was nothing—just the raging inferno and the scent of burning metal.

Frederick tightened his grip on her wrist, pulling her back. "We need to go. Now!"

Rain turned on him, her eyes blazing with fury. "She's still in there! We have to find her!"

Frederick's expression was unreadable, but his men exchanged uncertain glances. The helicopter had been completely engulfed in flames before crashing into the sea. The chances of survival were nonexistent.

"We can't stay here," Frederick said firmly. "If we do, we'll die too."

Tears burned down Rain's face as she fought against his hold. Every fiber of her being refused to believe Khai was gone. Not like this.

But there was no sign of Khai.

The flames swallowed the last remnants of the helicopter as it sank beneath the waves.

Khai Stanton was gone.

---

Meanwhile, miles away from the burning wreckage, a figure lay motionless on the rocky shore, waves lapping at her battered body. Blood streaked her face, and her breathing was shallow.

Khai Stanton had survived—but barely.

A pair of boots crunched against the gravel. Someone knelt beside her, fingers pressing against her pulse. A low chuckle echoed in the silence.

"Well, well... looks like fate isn't done with you yet."

A shadow loomed over her before she was lifted into strong arms. The last thing she heard before slipping into unconsciousness was the sound of a familiar voice murmuring:

"Let's see if you can survive this, Stanton."

Rain's POV

Two hours had passed. Two agonizing, unbearable hours, and still—no sign of Khai.

The wreckage had long since sunk beneath the dark waves, swallowed by the sea, but the fire still burned in my chest. My hands trembled as I clutched the damp blanket around me, but it did nothing to chase away the cold creeping into my bones.

Patrick had called the FBI and CIA the moment we were brought to safety. Now, the shoreline was swarmed with agents, floodlights cutting through the darkness as search teams scoured the area. Boats, helicopters, and divers combed through the waters, but each passing second without news of Khai made the air feel heavier, suffocating.

She should've been found by now.

"Rain." Patrick's voice was gentle, but I barely registered it.

I couldn't tear my eyes away from the water, my mind replaying the explosion over and over again—the way the flames swallowed the helicopter, how the wreckage plummeted into the ocean. The deafening sound of the blast still rang in my ears.

Khai was in there.

She was in there.

My stomach twisted violently. I sucked in a sharp breath, trying to suppress the bile rising in my throat.

She promised me.

Frederick stood a few feet away, talking to a man in an FBI vest. His face was unreadable, but I caught the way his jaw tightened, his hands clenching into fists. He knew something. He had to.

I forced my legs to move, my bare feet sinking into the cold sand as I marched toward him. "You know something," I accused, my voice shaking. "Tell me where she is."

Frederick met my gaze, unreadable as ever. "If I knew, she'd be here by now."

"That's not good enough!" I shouted, my voice cracking. "You always have a backup plan, always a way out. You knew what was going to happen. So don't stand there and tell me you don't know where she is!"

His eyes darkened. "I don't leave people behind, Rain."

"Then why is she still missing?"

Silence.

Frederick exhaled sharply, rubbing a hand over his face. For the first time since I met him, he looked... tired. Frustrated. Maybe even a little guilty.

Patrick stepped forward, his expression firm. "The search teams are doing everything they can, Rain."

I shook my head. I couldn't accept that. Khai was alive—I knew it. I could feel it.

I wrapped my arms around myself, my heart hammering so hard it hurt.

Come back to me, Khai.

Please.

Kroft, Louise, and Therese had just arrived, their faces filled with worry. As soon as they saw me, Louise and Therese rushed toward me, pulling me into a tight embrace.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Therese asked, her voice shaking.

I shook my head, but the moment Louise's arms wrapped around me, the weight of everything crashed down on me. I buried my face into her shoulder, gripping her shirt like it was the only thing keeping me from falling apart.

"They still haven't found Khai," I whispered, my voice barely audible.

The moment I said it, the dam inside me cracked, and the tears I had been holding back spilled freely.

Then I saw her—Aunt Joanne.

She moved past the agents and search teams, her eyes scanning the chaos until they landed on me. The second she saw my tear-streaked face, she hurried forward.

"Rain." Her voice was gentle yet firm, the way it always was when I needed comfort the most.

That was all it took.

I sobbed, my body shaking uncontrollably as she pulled me into her arms.

"It's okay, Bug," she whispered, rubbing my back soothingly. "Let it out. Let it all out."

I clung to her like a child, my fingers digging into her coat. The pain in my chest was unbearable, a crushing, suffocating weight.

"I—" My voice broke. "I can't lose her, Aunt Joanne. I can't—"

"You won't," she interrupted, her voice steady and certain. She cupped my face, forcing me to look at her. There was no hesitation in her eyes, no doubt. "Khai is still alive. I know it."

Something in the way she said it made my breath hitch.

I wanted to believe her. I needed to believe her.

But two hours had passed.

And Khai was still missing.

The moment shattered when an FBI agent stepped forward, his voice firm yet indifferent.

"Ms. Chadwick, can I ask for a statement?"

I barely had time to process his words before Therese exploded.

"What is wrong with you people?" she snapped, stepping in front of me like a shield. "Instead of working your ass off looking for Khai, you're here gathering information? She's still in trauma, still waiting in misery to know if her partner is alive, and you think now is the time for an interrogation? Really?"

The agent hesitated, clearly taken aback by her outburst, but Therese wasn't done.

"She just lost everything in one night, and all you can do is ask questions? How about finding Khai first before wasting time with statements?"

Louise placed a hand on Therese's arm, trying to calm her down, but the anger in Therese's eyes burned like fire.

I swallowed hard, my throat aching from crying, but I forced myself to speak.

"Therese." My voice was hoarse, barely above a whisper. "It's fine."

"No, it's not!" she shot back. "You shouldn't have to go through this alone while they stand around doing nothing!"

Aunt Joanne tightened her hold on me, her warmth grounding me, keeping me from breaking down all over again.

The agent sighed, glancing at his notepad before looking at me again. "I understand this is a difficult time, Ms. Chadwick. But any information you can provide will help us track down what happened to Khai."

My chest tightened at his words. What happened to Khai. As if she was already gone.

I shook my head, my fingers curling into fists. No. She's not gone.

"I..." My voice wavered, but I forced myself to steady it. "I'll answer your questions. But only if you promise me one thing."

The agent frowned. "And what's that?"

I lifted my gaze, meeting his eyes with a fierceness I didn't even know I had left.

"Find Khai. Bring her back to me."

The moment the shout rang out, my heart stopped. "We found a body!"

I stiffened, my breath caught in my throat. My mind raced with the possibility of it being Khai, but then, another voice cut through the tension.

"Male, around 60 something. White, gunshot on the chin—I believe—"

Frederick's voice rang out, sharp and clear through the chaos. "That's Lucious Stanton."

A wave of disbelief washed over me. Lucious Stanton, dead. The man who had been at the center of so many twisted secrets was now just another body in the wreckage. But even that couldn't pull me away from the gnawing ache in my chest.

We were still no closer to finding Khai.

As the search continued, bodies were pulled from the wreckage. One was the burnt body of the helicopter's pilot, his features unrecognizable, and others, too, were accounted for—but there was still no sign of Khai. The sea swallowed them all, the darkness relentless, and the hours ticked away.

I barely noticed the sky lightening with the first rays of dawn until a car screeched to a halt beside us.

Khai's twin sister, Khali, rushed out, her face a mix of worry and desperation.

"Rain!" she cried, her voice frantic. She ran toward me, her eyes scanning the area as if searching for the missing piece of the puzzle. "Are you okay?"

Her gaze darted around, locking onto the scattered search teams and the bodies that had been recovered. Her breath hitched as she stepped closer to me. "Tell me she's safe—Rain!"

I couldn't speak. The words caught in my throat like they had been sewn shut.

I shook my head, a feeling of dread settling like a stone in my stomach. I couldn't bring myself to say it aloud.

Khali froze, her eyes wide with disbelief. "No, no, that can't be—" Her voice trembled, a crack breaking through her usually steady exterior. "You can't be saying—"

The air around us seemed to close in, suffocating me. It felt like the ground could swallow me whole if it meant I didn't have to face the truth.

But I couldn't lie to her.

"I don't know where she is, Khali." My voice was barely a whisper. "They haven't found her."

Khali's face crumpled, her knees buckling beneath her as she stumbled forward. She caught herself just in time, but the shock in her eyes mirrored everything I was feeling.

"No... no, no..."

I reached out to her, my own heart breaking as I pulled her into my arms, both of us lost in the pain of the uncertainty, the raw fear that Khai might not be coming back.

But there was still a flicker of hope—just the slightest spark that maybe, just maybe, Khai was still out there. And I would hold on to that, no matter what.

The search continued, but it felt like time had slowed to a crawl. My thoughts were a blur, the weight of uncertainty pressing down on me, threatening to drown me in its depth. But then, something shifted in the air.

Two figures appeared in the dim light of the street, silhouetted against the growing dawn. At first, I couldn't make them out, the shadows playing tricks on my tired eyes. But as they approached, one of them was swaying, limping slightly but still moving forward with determination. And then I saw it—the unmistakable way the other figure held her up, guiding her through the darkness.

My heart leaped, and without thinking, I broke into a run.

The world seemed to fade around me as I closed the distance between us, the familiar sense of relief washing over me in waves as I reached them. It was Khai, and she was alive.

I didn't hesitate. I threw my arms around her, hugging her so tightly I feared I might never let go. I pressed my lips to hers in a desperate kiss, a kiss filled with all the emotions I had buried deep inside during those endless hours of uncertainty.

Khai chuckled softly against my lips, her voice weak but filled with warmth. "I'm okay, Rain. I'm okay..."

I pulled back slightly, just enough to meet her eyes. She was exhausted, bruised, and covered in dirt, but the fire in her eyes hadn't gone out. She was still here. And that was all that mattered.

I turned to Letty, the woman who had brought her back. She was standing there, a small smirk on her lips as she looked at the two of us.

"You're welcome," she said, her voice dry but with a hint of humor. "We're even now for all the food packs that you brought to me years ago."

Khai chuckled softly, the sound like a balm to my soul. Her hand found mine, and for the first time in what felt like forever, I allowed myself to breathe, to believe that everything was going to be okay.

"Thank you," I whispered to Letty, my voice thick with emotion.

Letty only nodded, as if she had done nothing more than the bare minimum. But I knew better. She had done the impossible. She had brought Khai back to me. And for that, she would always have my gratitude.

Khai leaned her head against my shoulder, letting out a sigh of relief. "I'm not going anywhere, Rain. Not without you."

Tears welled up in my eyes again, but this time, they were tears of relief. Of love. And of a future that we would face together.