Messing With Her? Are You Crazy! novel Chapter 1223

Drake pushed himself up to his feet, unable to stop himself from staring at her a moment longer.

While she was on the phone, the softness in her eyes had been completely genuine.

It was a jarring contrast to the ruthless killing machine that had dominated the garage just moments ago. It was like looking at two completely different people.

Especially that deadpan, affectionate "Love you too, Mom."

It was inexplicably... kind of cute.

But wait.

He had caught snippets of the woman's voice through the phone's speaker.

For some reason, it sounded... really familiar?

Like he had heard that exact cadence before.

Before he could dwell on the thought, Serena slipped her phone away, pulled her hood up, and turned to leave. She clearly had no intention of lingering.

Drake watched her back for two seconds.

He abruptly straightened his spine, pushing past the agonizing pain in his ribs, and planted his boots firmly.

Facing her retreating figure, he snapped off a flawless, crisp military salute.

"Thank you. For tonight."

It was the ultimate sign of respect an Elyndorian soldier could give to a superior warrior.

And a sincere debt of gratitude for saving their lives.

Serena didn't break her stride, merely offering a lazy wave over her shoulder. "Don't mention it."

"I only pulled you out of the fire because you wear the Elyndorian flag."

With that, she disappeared into the shadows of the exit ramp.

Drake wanted to call out and ask for her name, but she was already gone.

Her dark silhouette melted perfectly into the night.

He stood in silence, staring at the empty ramp for a long time.

"Captain," Wolf finally broke the quiet, awe heavily lacing his words. "Who... who exactly is that girl?"

"She's a goddamn phantom."

Drake secured the black metal lockbox and slipped out of the tech center, making a beeline to a secure drop point to offload the classified intel.

Not long after he pulled onto the highway, his personal, encrypted phone vibrated.

Drake glanced down at the dashboard.

The caller ID simply read: Home.

He blinked in surprise.

His family knew he was almost always deployed overseas on covert operations. They rarely, if ever, initiated contact.

He picked up the phone and hit answer.

In a split second, the lethal, blood-soaked aura of the special forces commander completely vanished.

His shoulders dropped, and he let out a long breath.

"Mom," he answered, his deep voice softening into something entirely domestic.

"Jerrick, are you running an operation in Severia right now?" Catherine's warm voice came through the line.

Jerrick froze.