Part 2
The county jail cell smelled of stale urine and industrial bleach. I sat on the metal cot, staring at the cracked concrete wall, forcing my breathing to slow. Harlan had stripped my weapons and thrown me in lockup for "assaulting a peace officer," giving the Vance family ample time to scrub whatever physical evidence remained at the barn....
PART 2
Aaron Pike arrived in Nebraska the next morning.
We had served together in Afghanistan before he left the Marines and became an FBI special agent. He did not hug me when I met him behind a truck stop outside the county line. He looked at the memory card, then at me.
“Tell me you haven’t confronted anyone.”
“I haven’t.”
“Good. Keep it...
Part 2
The pen scratched harshly against the paper as I scrawled my signature across the liability waiver. I handed the clipboard directly to Chloe, making sure to look her dead in the eyes. She flinched, snatching it away like it burned.
Marcus laughed, a cruel, barking sound that made my blood run cold. He cracked his knuckles, rolling his neck....
PART 2
Jason rolled his shoulders like he was preparing for a demonstration.
“Last chance to back out.”
“I’m not here to impress your students,” I said. “I’m here because you put your hands on our son.”
He came forward fast.
The first punch never touched me.
I stepped aside and let his momentum carry him past. He turned, embarrassed, and threw another wild combination....
Deep in Norway's icy fjords, ultra-restricted caves house billions in pre-positioned U.S. Marine military hardware, ready for instant global deployment. But during a surprise midnight inspection, Colonel Marcus Vance unlocked Vault 4 and uncovered something terrifying: an unmarked, heavily encrypted crate pulsing with active power... What deadly secrets are hiding inside?
Colonel Vance was told Vault 4 didn't exist on...
Part 2
Sterling hit the metal console with a heavy grunt, the wind completely knocked out of his lungs. Before the two approaching MPs could even unholster their weapons, I spun back to the keyboard, smashed the transmit button, and bypassed the encrypted safety protocols in two lightning-fast keystrokes.
"Alpha One, this is Motherbird! Break left! The south wall is rigged!...
PART 2
Vickers stared at me as though my face had changed.
“What exactly are you saying, Captain Rourke?”
Rourke glanced at the officers around us. “Not here.”
That answer irritated Vickers more than any insult could have.
“This is my command.”
“And this investigation crosses authorities outside your operational lane,” Rourke replied. “We need Commander Cole in the secure room.”
Mercer backed away from the...
PART 2
Eric’s face changed.
“Madison,” he warned.
She didn’t look away.
“You want them to know Rebecca isn’t my biological mother?” she said into the microphone. “Fine. They should also know she was the one who stayed.”
A murmur moved through the room.
Eric reached for the microphone.
Madison stepped back.
He grabbed her elbow.
I was between them before I consciously decided to move.
“Take your hand...
NATO’s Multinational Brigade in Estonia officially activated full defense readiness today, but panic erupted at US European Command. Captain Marcus Vance discovered classified deployment logs altered overnight from inside the Pentagon. As combat units moved into position, a rogue encrypted broadcast transmitted a terrifying question: who really authorized the strike?
Captain Vance just uncovered something that could spark an international...
Part 2
Chloe’s voice echoed through the massive room, vibrating with a fierce intensity I had never heard from her before. She marched onto the stage, her valedictorian gown billowing behind her. The principal, Mr. Harrison, rushed out from the wings, his hands raised in a frantic panic.
"Please, let's take this off the stage," Mr. Harrison pleaded, his eyes darting...
