“Everyone.”
The room became silent.
Elias understood.
The drive wasn't merely evidence.
It was leverage.
Whoever controlled it could expose dozens of people.
Maybe hundreds.
And someone had realized Elias might accidentally become part of the chain.
“Why my wallet?” he asked.
Claire answered.
“We think they believed you had the drive.”
“But I didn't.”
“They didn't know that.”
Elias considered the possibility.
Then he remembered something.
That morning, before leaving home, Rebecca had given him a small envelope.
“Dad, can you bring this to me?”
“What is it?”
“Something I found in the attic.”
He had forgotten about it.
Elias reached into his overnight bag.
There was the envelope.
He opened it.
Inside was a small photograph.
A man standing beside a warehouse.
Daniel Mercer.
Elias stared.
On the back was a handwritten note.
Ask Elias what happened in Room 14.
Claire looked at it.
“What is Room 14?”
Elias felt cold.
He remembered.
Room 14.
Thirteen years earlier.
The last place where he had questioned Mercer.
Mercer had claimed that someone had been stealing evidence from inside the bureau.
He had refused to name the person.
Instead, he had said:
If I tell you, you'll be looking for a dead man.
Elias had thought it was a threat.
Maybe it wasn't.
Maybe it had been a warning.
“Elias?”
He looked up.
“Room 14 wasn't an interview room.”
“What was it?”
“A storage room.”
“For what?”
“Sealed evidence.”
Claire frowned.
“Why would Mercer care?”
“Because that's where we found the missing files.”
Grant stepped closer.
“What happened?”
Elias shook his head.
“I never found out.”
“Why?”
“Because someone removed the evidence before I returned.”
“Who had access?”
Elias stared at him.
“Four people.”
“Names?”
Elias began listing them.
Two were dead.
One had retired.
And one was still working.
Claire's face changed.
“Who?”
Elias looked at her.
“Deputy Director Thomas Hale.”
Claire went completely still.
“That can't be.”
“Why?”
“Because Hale died eleven years ago.”
Elias frowned.
“No.”
“What?”
“Hale didn't die.”
Claire stared at him.
“How do you know?”
“Because I saw him.”
“When?”
“Three years ago.”
“Where?”
Elias hesitated.
“Outside a federal courthouse.”
Grant stepped back.
“Why didn't you report it?”
“Because I thought I was mistaken.”
Claire whispered:
“You weren't.”
The door suddenly opened.
An agent rushed in.
“Director.”
Grant turned.
“What?”
“Keller escaped.”
Everyone froze.
“How?”
“He attacked an officer during transport.”
“And Pike?”
“Missing.”
Elias closed his eyes.
The pieces were coming together.
Keller.
Pike.
Mercer.
Hale.
Room 14.
The drive.
And him.
He opened his eyes.
“They're coming for the evidence.”
Claire nodded.
“Then we need to move it.”
Elias shook his head.
“No.”
“No?”
“That's exactly what they expect.”
Grant stared at him.
“What do you suggest?”
Elias looked at the old badge sitting on the table.
“Let them think they have it.”
The Trap
The plan was simple.
Almost too simple.
The investigators would leak information suggesting that Elias had the encrypted drive.
They would allow Keller's network to discover that Elias was leaving the bureau with the evidence.
Then they would follow whoever came for him.
Claire objected immediately.
“Absolutely not.”
Elias smiled.
“You've become cautious.”
“I've become responsible.”
“Same thing at your age.”
She gave him a look.
“You're sixty-eight.”
“And you're forty-nine.”
“Exactly.”
Elias laughed.
Grant entered.
“The plan is ready.”
Claire folded her arms.
“I still hate it.”
“So do I,” Elias said.
“Good.”
Elias looked at Grant.
“Where's the decoy?”
Grant placed a small black case on the table.
“Identical dimensions.”
Elias opened it.
Inside was a fake encrypted drive.
“Good.”
“What happens when they attack?”
“We intercept.”
Elias shook his head.
“No.”
Grant frowned.
“What?”
“Let them talk first.”
“You're not a field investigator anymore.”
“I know.”
“Then why?”
“Because people reveal more when they believe they've already won.”
Claire smiled.
“That part hasn't changed.”
That evening, Elias left the bureau alone.
He drove his old pickup.
The real tracking device had been removed.
The fake one was hidden beneath the seat.
He headed east.
The sun disappeared behind the horizon.
The highway became dark.
Twenty minutes later, headlights appeared behind him.
A black sedan.
Elias didn't need a mirror to know.
He continued driving.
The sedan followed.
Another vehicle appeared.
Then another.
Three cars.
Elias smiled.
“Come on.”
He exited the highway.
The road became narrower.
Eventually, he turned onto an abandoned industrial road.
The old warehouse stood at the end.
Room 14.
The same place.
Thirteen years later.
Elias parked.
He stepped out.
The three vehicles stopped behind him.
Doors opened.
Four men emerged.
Keller was one of them.
Pike stood beside him.
The third man was older.
Gray hair.
Thin face.
Elias recognized him immediately.
Daniel Mercer.
The fourth man stepped out last.
Elias stared.
Thomas Hale.
Alive.
Hale smiled.
“Hello, Elias.”
Elias felt no surprise.
Only confirmation.
“I wondered when you'd come back.”
Hale walked closer.
“You should have stayed retired.”
“I tried.”
“You didn't.”
“I didn't know I was involved.”
“You weren't.”
“Until today.”
Hale smiled.
“Exactly.”
Keller walked toward Elias.
“Where's the drive?”
Elias pointed toward the truck.
“Inside.”
Keller smiled.
“I knew it.”
Pike looked nervous.
“Maybe we should just take it and leave.”
Mercer shook his head.
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because Elias knows too much.”
Elias looked at Mercer.
“You still talk too much.”
Mercer laughed.
“You always thought you were smarter than me.”
“No.”
Elias paused.
“I thought you were smarter than you actually were.”
Mercer's smile disappeared.
Hale raised a hand.
“Enough.”
He looked at Elias.
“Give us the drive.”
Elias reached into the truck.
He retrieved the black case.
He held it up.
Hale smiled.
“Good.”
Then Elias said:
“Before I give it to you, answer one question.”
Hale laughed.
“You're negotiating?”
“No.”
“What then?”
“I want to know why you took the evidence.”
Hale's expression changed.