Echoes in the Code

The safehouse was silent, save for the soft hum of Jared’s tablet as it processed the last fragments of decrypted files from the flash drive they’d recovered.

Tricia leaned against the window, watching the street below. Her mind wasn’t on the code Jared was breaking, but on what she already knew. Nathan. Her brother. The man who once claimed he had answers had been keeping the darkest secret of all.

Jared cursed under his breath. “You knew,” he said quietly.

She didn’t turn around. “Since the night I left the club.”

Jared stood, tablet in hand, eyes heavy with disbelief. “And you didn’t think to tell me?”

Tricia exhaled slowly. “What would it have changed? We needed to keep moving. And you would’ve gone after him immediately.”

“I still might,” Jared snapped. “He was part of it, Tricia. Project S.O.L.A.C.E. wasn’t just something that happened to you, it’s something he aided.”

She finally turned. Her eyes didn’t flinch. “I know.”