CHAPTER 74: THE BLACKWOOD CONNECTION

Viktor’s hospital room was a stark contrast to Nina’s private suite. Standard-issue furniture, harsh fluorescent lighting, and the constant backdrop of machines monitoring his deteriorating condition.

The poison had taken its toll... his once-powerful frame now appeared gaunt beneath the thin hospital gown, his breathing shallow and labored.

Despite his weakened state, his eyes remained sharp, alert. The mind that had led them through countless operations was still intact, even as his body betrayed him.

Damien sat in the uncomfortable plastic chair beside the bed, while Dimitri stood near the window and Andre worked quietly at his laptop in the corner.

The tension in the room was palpable... weeks of frustration, dwindling time, and the weight of watching their leader slowly die.

A soft knock interrupted the heavy silence. Andre looked up from his screen as their fourth team member, Pavel, slipped inside.

"He’s moving," Pavel said quietly, closing the door behind him. "The kid. Just left the hospital with the mother. Looks like they’re heading home."

Viktor’s eyes shifted to Damien, a slight nod indicating he’d heard. Even that small movement seemed to cost him effort.

"This is our window," Damien said, rising from his chair. "We approach him away from the hospital, away from the family. Neutral ground."

"Remember," Viktor’s voice was barely above a whisper, but it carried the authority that had kept them alive through eight years of operations. "Talk nicely. Maybe he’ll agree if you explain our situation properly."

He paused, struggling to catch his breath before continuing. "Someone with his level of connections... we can’t take the chance to make a scene and alert our enemies about our position. We’re not sure about his connections, so think carefully about every decision. Don’t do anything rash."

Damien nodded, understanding the gravity of Viktor’s warning. Their position was precarious enough without creating unnecessary complications.

"Andre, what did you find about him?" Damien asked, turning to their tech specialist.

Andre looked up from his laptop, adjusting his glasses. "Alexander Hale... Orphaned young, grew up in the system. Clean record, decent grades, nothing remarkable on the surface."

He scrolled through data on his screen. "Close friendship with Danny Morrison, that’s how he connected with the family. Works part-time, modest apartment near campus, typical college expenses. Everything normal for a kid his age."

Andre paused, his expression shifting. "Except for one very significant detail."

The room went silent. Viktor’s breathing seemed to grow more labored as he waited.

"Blackwood."

The reaction was immediate and electric. Dimitri straightened at the window as if struck by lightning. Damien’s jaw tightened, his hands clenching unconsciously.

Even Viktor, despite his weakened condition, managed to focus his attention with razor-sharp intensity.

They were all shocked by just hearing the name. For normal people, Blackwood was just a business family who were very wealthy - old money, philanthropy, influential connections.

But they knew the truth about everything hidden in this simple-looking world. And the Blackwood’s position among the Seven Giants made them untouchable.

"What about Blackwood? Tell me fast," Damien asked eagerly, his voice tight with urgency.

The tech guy’s face lit up with excitement. "Well, he dated Sophia Blackwood, the daughter of James Blackwood himself. I only have bits and pieces of the story, but this looks very interesting..." Andre laughed, then stopped abruptly when he noticed the other team members glaring at him.

"Well, later he found out that Sophia was just playing him and he got beaten up by her security maybe... What a typical Blackwood spoiled brat."

"Don’t talk nonsense," Damien warned him sharply. Speaking carelessly about the Blackwoods while they were in their domain was beyond dangerous.

Andre sobered immediately. "Right, sorry. But here’s the interesting part... the part that’s puzzling, to say the least."

He pulled up additional files on his screen. "He’s currently favored by Victoria Blackwood, working in her company for a few weeks now, and still is. She even brought him to the party James Blackwood himself organized. It means he met the sibling duo too."

"Is he her toy or something?" Damien asked, puzzled. "But why bring her toy to the party of her husband? Which would be suicidal."

Viktor, who had been listening to all of this with growing intensity despite his condition, suddenly spoke up. His voice was weak but carried absolute certainty.

"Is there any possibility that he’s one of us?"

The question hung in the air as they all looked at Viktor, the implications sinking in slowly.

"Isn’t it impossible for him being one of us?" Dimitri asked from his position by the window. "He’s too young. Can he really handle all of that?"

Viktor’s laugh was weak but held echoes of his old command presence. "You think age matters in our line of work? You know better. And the best cover is always the one that looks impossible."

Damien worked through the implications. "The Blackwoods don’t adopt strays. Especially those siblings. He attended their party... he must have met them. Especially Catherine."

"She’s more dangerous than her brother in some ways. More calculating." Viktor coughed, leaving small droplets of blood on his hospital gown. "If she’s backing this young man, protecting his operations... there’s a compelling reason."

Andre closed his laptop with a sharp snap. "So what’s our play? If he really is connected to the Blackwoods at operational level..."

He struggled to sit up slightly, Damien immediately moving to help support him. Viktor’s voice came rough, but clear.

"Think about it carefully. Catherine doesn’t put just anyone in her orbit, much less parade them at James Blackwood’s own event."

He paused for breath, then continued, each word deliberate.

"That wasn’t a casual choice... it was a signal. Either he means nothing to her, which doesn’t match what we’ve seen, or he’s worth enough that keeping him close serves her interests."

"The family connection seems genuine though," Dimitri pointed out. "His relationship with the Morrisons, the way he reacted to that little girl’s crisis..."

"The best assets maintain genuine connections," Viktor replied, his breathing becoming more labored.

"It provides perfect cover. No one questions a college student helping his adoptive family. But a college student who can arrange VIP treatment at Memorial Hospital with a single phone call? That’s not normal social work. That’s power."

The room fell silent as they processed the implications. If Alex was indeed connected to the Blackwoods professionally, their approach would need to be completely different.

"Either way," Viktor continued, his voice growing fainter, "we go ahead. Talk to him nicely. If needed, make deals with him. If he seems trustworthy, you can tell him our situation."

He fixed Damien with a steady gaze despite his weakness. "But remember - if he refuses, we accept it gracefully. Making an enemy of a Blackwood asset is not just unwise, it’s suicidal. We’re already exposed enough as it is."

Damien nodded, checking his watch. "They’ve been gone ten minutes. We need to move if we’re going to intercept him."

As Damien and Dimitri prepared to leave, Viktor called out once more, his voice barely audible.

"Damien."

"Yes?"

"If I’m wrong about him... if he’s just a college kid who got lucky with connections... then be very careful. The Blackwoods don’t maintain loose ends. If he’s serving their purposes without realizing the full scope, he may be in as much danger as we are."

Damien understood the deeper implication. In their world, ignorance wasn’t protection... it was a liability that powerful families eliminated when convenient.

"We’ll handle it properly," he promised.

As the two men left Viktor’s room, they carried the weight of what they’d discovered.

They weren’t just approaching a college student anymore - they were potentially making contact with a Blackwood operative, or an innocent caught in a web of power he might not fully comprehend.

Either way, their next conversation would determine not just Viktor’s fate, but possibly their own survival in a game where the Blackwoods held most of the cards.

***

The sedan’s engine hummed quietly as Damien kept a steady three-car distance behind Alex’s vehicle.

In the passenger seat, Dimitri checked his weapon out of habit, though both men hoped this would remain a conversation.

"He knows we’re here," Damien observed, watching Alex’s deliberate driving pattern in the distance.

"Since when?" Dimitri asked, his accent barely noticeable after years of practice.

"Probably since the hospital parking garage. Look at his movements... he’s not trying to lose us, just confirming we’re following."

They watched Alex drop the woman at a modest two-story house, the kind of middle-class neighborhood where surveillance stood out.

"Smart. Either he’s trained, or he’s naturally cautious." Damien’s grip tightened on the steering wheel. "Viktor might be right about him."

Alex’s car pulled away from the curb with the same unhurried pace, but now his route became obviously deliberate. Instead of heading back toward the hospital or campus, he took a series of turns that served no purpose except to confirm the tail.

"He’s leading us somewhere," Dimitri said.

"Somewhere isolated. Away from witnesses." Damien followed the increasingly industrial route. "Either he wants to talk, or..."

"Or he wants to handle a problem quietly."

The warehouse district stretched ahead of them, empty lots and abandoned buildings casting long shadows in the late afternoon sun. Alex’s car finally stopped beside a defunct loading dock, the kind of place where conversations could happen without interruption.

Damien parked thirty feet away, engine running. For a moment, both men sat in silence, evaluating the situation.

"Remember Viktor’s instructions," Damien said quietly.

"Diplomatic first. But if this goes wrong..."

"It won’t." Damien’s voice carried more confidence than he felt.

They watched Alex exit his vehicle with deliberate calm, using the car door as partial cover while keeping his hands visible. Professional positioning, but not overtly threatening.

"Definitely trained," Dimitri muttered.

"Or very smart." Damien killed the engine. "Let’s find out which."

They stepped out of the sedan with practiced coordination - Dimitri moving left while Damien took point. Both men kept their hands visible, weapons holstered but accessible.

The industrial setting amplified every sound. Their footsteps on concrete. The distant hum of traffic. The metallic ping of cooling engines.

Alex remained beside his car, watching them approach with the kind of stillness that spoke of controlled tension rather than fear.

"You’ve been following me," Alex called out when they were close enough for normal conversation. His voice was steady, neither accusatory nor friendly.

"My name is Damien, this is Dimitri" he said. "And we need your help. "