"He did."
"Then trust me too."
Cole looked at her.
The seventy-two-year-old woman who had spent six days sleeping in a car was now standing in the rain holding a flashlight.
He nodded.
They entered.
Inside, the warehouse smelled of oil and rust.
Rows of empty shelves stretched into darkness.
Then they heard a noise.
Someone coughing.
Evelyn froze.
"Nathan?"
No answer.
They followed the sound.
A room at the back.
A man was lying on the floor.
Alive.
Barely.
It wasn't Nathan.
It was David Mercer.
The reporter everyone believed had died three years earlier.
Evelyn stared at him.
"You're alive."
David laughed weakly.
"Apparently."
Cole helped him sit up.
"Where's Nathan?"
David looked at Evelyn.
"He knew they'd come for you."
"Where is he?"
"Trying to expose Hale."
"How?"
David pointed toward a computer.
"Everything is there."
Cole turned it on.
Files appeared.
Bank accounts.
Photographs.
Audio recordings.
Names.
Dates.
Payments.
Then a video opened automatically.
Nathan appeared on screen.
Evelyn's breath caught.
"Grandma."
She stepped closer.
"If you're seeing this, I'm sorry."
Nathan looked exhausted.
"But if you made it here, it means Cole found you."
Cole lowered his head.
Nathan continued.
"I need you to know something."
He paused.
"I didn't disappear because I wanted to leave you."
Evelyn began crying.
"I disappeared because they threatened you."
The screen went black.
Then one final message appeared.
TRUST NO ONE AT THE POLICE STATION.
Suddenly the warehouse lights came on.
A voice echoed from the darkness.
"That's very good advice."
Cole turned.
Victor Hale stepped into view.
Behind him stood six armed men.
No Way Out
For several seconds nobody moved.
Hale smiled.
"Mrs. Carter."
Evelyn stared at him.
"You're Victor Hale."
"Yes."
"You killed those people."
Hale's expression remained calm.
"I corrected problems."
Cole stepped forward.
"You're done."
Hale laughed.
"Men like you always say that."
Cole looked around.
Six men.
Two exits.
One injured reporter.
One seventy-two-year-old woman.
Bad odds.
But Cole had never been especially impressed by odds.
He glanced at Ray.
Ray understood.
The bikers moved.
Chaos exploded.
A metal shelf crashed.
Lights shattered.
Someone shouted.
Cole grabbed Evelyn and pulled her behind a concrete pillar.
The warehouse became darkness.
Then came the sound of motorcycles.
The bikers had started the engines outside.
The noise filled the warehouse.
Hale shouted orders.
Cole grabbed David.
"Move!"
They ran.
A bullet struck the wall behind them.
Evelyn stumbled.
Cole caught her.
"I've got you."
They reached the loading door.
It wouldn't open.
Locked.
Cole looked at Evelyn.
"Can you climb?"
She stared at the eight-foot barrier.
"At seventy-two?"
"Yes."
She sighed.
"I hate you."
Cole smiled.
"Good."
He boosted her upward.
Evelyn grabbed the edge.
Her hands hurt.
Her hip screamed.
But she pulled herself over.
Cole followed.
David crawled after them.
They reached the motorcycles.
The bikers formed a moving shield.
They rode.
No one spoke until they were miles away.
Finally Evelyn asked:
"Did we get the files?"
Cole checked the bag.
"Yes."
David smiled.
"Then Hale has a problem."
Cole looked at him.
"What?"
David's expression became grim.
"We're missing one file."
"Which one?"
David stared at Evelyn.
"The file that proves Nathan is alive."
The Prisoner
Nathan was being held beneath an abandoned office building.
He had been there for six days.
He knew Hale would eventually find Evelyn.
That was why he'd left the trail.
That was why he'd created the blue-door message.
He had known Cole would understand.
But Nathan had not expected his grandmother to come looking for him.
He heard footsteps.
The door opened.
Victor Hale entered.
"You've caused considerable trouble."
Nathan looked up.
"How's my grandmother?"
Hale smiled.
"Still alive."
Nathan's expression hardened.
"You touch her and everything goes public."
"Everything already is."
Hale placed a tablet on the table.
A news report showed police surrounding a warehouse.
Hale shook his head.
"You think evidence matters."
"It does."
"No."
Hale leaned closer.
"People believe whatever they're told."
Nathan stared at him.
"Not forever."
Hale walked out.
Nathan waited.
Then he noticed something.
A small camera in the corner.
Its red light was blinking.
Nathan smiled.
Because he knew what that meant.
Someone was watching.
Someone outside Hale's organization.
Someone who had been waiting.
The Evidence
David revealed the missing file was stored separately.
Nathan had hidden it in a place only Evelyn would know.
Her house.
They returned to her neighborhood.
The little yellow house looked exactly as she'd left it.
Except the front door was open.
Evelyn stopped.
"My God."
Cole raised his hand.
Everyone waited.
No movement.
They entered.
The house had been searched.
Drawers opened.
Books scattered.
Pictures knocked from walls.
Evelyn walked slowly into the kitchen.
Her chicken soup pot was still on the stove.
She touched it.
Then she noticed the old recipe book.
She opened it.
Inside was a handwritten note.
Nathan's handwriting.
Grandma, you always told me the best hiding place was somewhere nobody thinks to look.