Badass in Disguise (Shadow) novel Chapter 351

Chapter 351

Jade’s POV:

$75

The phone’s ringtone jolted me awake. I’d slept into the evening, my body demanding rest after everything that had happened. Grabbing my phone from the nightstand, I saw Max’s name flashing on the screen. A video call.

“Max?” I answered, relief washing over me at seeing his face, even though he looked pale against the hospital pillows.

“Jade,” his voice was weak but clear. “They told me what happened to Chase.”

“It’s my fault Chase got hurt,” Max’s voice cracked. “If I hadn’t-”

“Chase is fine,” I interrupted. “The surgery was successful. He’ll recover.”

Max’s eyes were haunted, still filled with self–reproach. I softened my tone. “Listen to me, Max. They’re your family, so it’s natural you’re worried about them. But these people are targeting me. This started because of me, and you all got dragged in. None of this is your fault.”

“Will you be in danger?” he asked, his brow furrowed with concern.

I laughed softly, trying to sound reassuring. “With Ethan protecting me? I’ll be fine.”

“Is Ethan better than them?” Max asked, his eyes wide with childlike hope.

“Do you even need to ask?” I smiled, making my voice confident.

He hesitated, then whispered, “What about Mom and Emily? Will they…” His voice trailed off, unable to finish the thought. Despite Linda’s cruelty, she’d never neglected Max. He was her son–how could he not care about her safety?

“Just focus on recovering,” I told him firmly. “If you need anything, talk to Sergeant Ford. I’ll rescue Linda and Emily, don’t worry.”

I got up and walked to the desk, resuming work on the bomb I’d started assembling earlier.

Two days passed before I finally called everyone to my room for a strategy meeting. Night, Chris, and Ethan all looked exhausted, dark circles under their eyes from waiting anxiously for my plan. I’d also summoned Sloane and Maverick to join us.

“Here,” I pointed to a world map spread across the table, marking locations with precision. “Shadow Organization has bases in Poland, Sydney, and Nigeria. I’ve just received encrypted intel from an insider confirming the location of the New Delhi facility.”

I looked at each of them in turn. “Chris, you’ll go to New Delhi. Night, take Nigeria. Sloane and Maverick, you’ll handle Sydney. Ethan, you’re responsible for Poland.”

They all nodded, though Night’s expression remained thunderous.

“We’ve had operatives with weapons stationed near Sydney and Nigeria for some time now,” I continued. “They’ve been waiting for my recovery to strike. The plan was to cripple their capabilities by destroying as many bases as possible.”

1/4

10:38 Tue, Oct 7

but we can see the peoperative

w risking wow life for rangers

2300

*** ? * shent saving them. We’re taking down Shadow Organization st the same time. People red resting god the ergatitation reeds derinsing.”

marked every Shadow base I knew about on the map, writing exact coordinates and detailing what I knew about each

het or not we save these people–whether I live or die–1 want you to destroy as many of these bases as possible five days from

Night’s face contorted with fury, but I knew Shadow Organization wouldn’t target him, Chris, or Ethans directly. They just wanted to separate them from me. That knowledge gave me some peace of mind about their safety.

Early the next morning. Sloane and Maverick were the first to depart. Chris was preparing to leave as well.

He pulled me into a hug, his voice tight with emotion. “Night and I have already lost you once. Don’t make us go through that again.”

“Ethan mentioned something about a wedding,” I said, trying to lighten the mood. “I wasn’t going to attend, but now I think I will.”

“You didn’t punch him for saying that?” I raised an eyebrow.

“I wanted to. He said even worse things. But I was afraid Night would hear the commotion and put a bullet in him.”

“Worse things? Like what?”

Chris smiled mysteriously. Tll tell you after we deal with Shadow Organization.”

I nodded. “Be careful out there.”

I’ve already spoken with Night,” he said, patting my shoulder gently. “Say something reassuring to him. He’ll listen to you.”

I didn’t seek out Night immediately. The deadline from SPECTER hung over us, with less than four days remaining. That evening, Night- who had been silently protesting by staying in his room–finally came to find me.

After Night left, I received a video call from Chase Astor. He’d been moved from intensive care to a regular room, having regained consciousness less than ten hours ago.

He looked terrible–head wrapped in bandages, leg in a cast, hands injured. Eleanor was holding the phone for him.

The moment he saw me, he wailed dramatically, “Jade! My car…”

Despite his efforts to maintain composure, I could see he was trying not to move much. Any movement clearly caused him intense pain,

2/4

10:38 Tue, Oct 71

Chapter 351

I’ll get you a new one, I promised.

Not just any car. I want another Bugatti, he insisted.

131 find the same model.”

That works, he agreed, satisfied.

Around nine–thirty that night, Ethan came to my room with Maxi the robot trailing behind him. As I turned, he pulled me into an embrace.

Are you leaving?” I asked against his chest.

“Yes,” he whispered.

“Anything you want to tell me?”

“Many things,” he replied. “But they can wait until you return.”

“Whatever you want,” I said softly.

“Can you promise me something?” he asked.

I looked up at him. “If you want to hear it, I’ll say it.”

“Go ahead,” he encouraged.

“I promise I’ll survive,” I told him. “I promise you’ll see me in person again, not my corpse.”

Ethan smiled, a hint of relief in his eyes despite his teasing tone. “Not very heartfelt, but I do feel better.”

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify