Novel-novel oleh Mimisunshine

Agent Park shook her head when I explained Emma's proposal. "Absolutely not. Using a child as bait violates every protocol. Every ethical guideline. Every—""I'm already bait," Emma interrupted. Seven years old and interrupting an FBI agent. "The bad people want me. They're chasing me. So I'm already in danger. At least this way, you control the danger. You know when it's coming. You can be ready.""Emma—""And Mommy can't keep running. It's making her sick. She doesn't sleep. She barely eats. I see her crying when she thinks I'm not looking. This has to end. If I can help end it, I want to help."Agent Park looked at me. "She makes a compelling argument. But Bethany, if something goes wrong, if Emma gets hurt, you'll never forgive yourself. I won't forgive myself.""I know. But she's right. Running isn't working. Hiding isn't working. At some point, we have to face them. And if Emma's presence gives us tactical advantages, strategic leverage, then maybe we use that.""The psychologic

Morning came too quickly. I hadn't slept. Just lay there replaying Brock's text over and over. "I know this is a setup. But I'm coming anyway."Agent Park arrived at dawn with coffee and a tactical briefing. She spread maps across the kitchen table. Showed me the rest stop. The positioning of her teams. The escape routes they'd block. The ways this could go right.She didn't mention the ways it could go wrong. We both already knew."Brock will come armed," Agent Park said. "He's desperate. Cornered. That makes him unpredictable. Maybe more dangerous than Jessica because he's emotional instead of calculated.""But Jessica is the real threat," I said. "Brock is just her tool. Her weapon. She's the one planning this. The one pulling strings.""About that." Agent Park pulled up her tablet. Showed me communications intercepts. Cell tower data. Security footage from various locations. "We've been analyzing Brock's movements since his escape. Tracking his path. And Bethany, he's been in cons

I struggled against Brock in the darkness. His grip was strong. Desperate. But not trained. Not professional like Jessica's mercenaries had been."Let go of me!" I twisted hard. My elbow connected with something soft. His ribs. He grunted but didn't release me.Rodriguez's flashlight beam swung wildly. She couldn't get a clear shot. Brock and I were too tangled together. Moving too fast."Bethany, drop!" Rodriguez shouted.I went limp. Dead weight. Brock wasn't expecting it. His grip shifted. I slipped through his arms. Hit the floor hard.Rodriguez fired. The shot went high. Hit the ceiling. Plaster rained down.Brock ran. Down the hallway toward the kitchen. I heard him crashing into furniture. Knocking things over in the dark."Emma!" I screamed. "Emma, where are you?"No answer. Just silence from her bedroom. Terrible silence.I crawled toward her room. My hands found the doorframe. I pulled myself up. Felt along the wall for the light switch even though the power was out.Marcus'

I couldn't sleep after Agent Park's text about Brock's suicide attempt. Something felt wrong. Off. Like a piece of a puzzle was missing and I couldn't see what.At six AM, I called Agent Park directly."The suicide attempt. Tell me more. When exactly did it happen?""According to the prison, around midnight. Guard found him hanging from a bedsheet tied to the ceiling vent. Cut him down immediately. He's alive but in medical custody.""And you believe that? That it was really a suicide attempt?""I believe the prison is reporting a suicide attempt. Whether Brock actually tried to kill himself or whether something else happened, I can't confirm. Why?""Because Jessica visited him two weeks ago under a fake name. Because the man at Emma's window looked like Brock. Because the timing of everything is too convenient. What if Brock didn't try to kill himself? What if he escaped and the prison is covering it up?""That's a serious accusation. Prisons don't just cover up escapes.""They do if

We never made it back to New York.Agent Park changed plans within hours. "Too risky. Jessica knows we'd expect you to return. She'll be ready. Waiting. We need to relocate you again. Somewhere completely different. Somewhere no one knows about.""She found us in Vermont in less than a week. What makes you think anywhere else is safer?""Because someone leaked your Vermont location. Someone inside my organization. Someone Jessica has compromised." Agent Park's voice was tight with fury. "I've initiated an internal investigation. But until we find the mole, we can't trust anyone. This relocation, I'm handling personally. Only three people will know where you're going. Me. And two agents I've worked with for fifteen years. People I trust with my life.""You trusted the Vermont team and look what happened.""I know. But I'm out of options. Either we try again with tighter security, or I let you go back to New York and hope we catch Jessica before she kills you. Pick your poison."Montana

Agent Park called at dawn the morning after the fire."I heard about Marcus's apartment. Arson. Professional job. This is Jessica sending a message." Her voice was tight. "Bethany, you can't stay in New York. She's escalating. Next time it won't be an empty apartment. Next time someone dies.""I know. I'm already planning to leave. Small town. Far from here. Disappear like she wants.""That won't work. Jessica has resources to track you anywhere. She found Marcus's apartment. She knows your patterns. Your connections. Your habits. If you run on your own, she'll find you within weeks.""Then what do I do?""Witness protection. Federal program. New identities. Complete disappearance. We move you tonight. Safe house in Vermont while we build the case against Jessica. Once she's arrested, you can come back. Resume your life. But until then, you need to vanish completely."Marcus was listening. He'd spent the night on our couch, not wanting to be alone after the fire. He nodded at me. Agre

We never made it back to New York.Agent Park changed plans within hours. "Too risky. Jessica knows we'd expect you to return. She'll be ready. Waiting. We need to relocate you again. Somewhere completely different. Somewhere no one knows about.""She found us in Vermont in less than a week. What makes you think anywhere else is safer?""Because someone leaked your Vermont location. Someone inside my organization. Someone Jessica has compromised." Agent Park's voice was tight with fury. "I've initiated an internal investigation. But until we find the mole, we can't trust anyone. This relocation, I'm handling personally. Only three people will know where you're going. Me. And two agents I've worked with for fifteen years. People I trust with my life.""You trusted the Vermont team and look what happened.""I know. But I'm out of options. Either we try again with tighter security, or I let you go back to New York and hope we catch Jessica before she kills you. Pick your poison."Montana

Agent Park spent the next week unraveling Jessica Patterson's empire. Every day brought new discoveries. Each one more damning than the last.I sat in her office watching her whiteboard fill with connections. Lines connecting Jessica to Shaw. Shaw to bankrupt designers. Jessica to Jade Phoenix Investments. Jade Phoenix to dozens of fashion brands built on stolen work."This isn't just fraud," Agent Park said. She added another connection to the board. "This is organized crime. A criminal enterprise operating for forty years under the cover of legitimate business. RICO territory. Federal conspiracy. Money laundering. Tax evasion. The charges we can bring are extensive.""But you need Jessica to bring them," I said. "And she's gone.""We'll find her. She can't hide forever. No one can."But I wasn't so sure. Jessica had forty years to prepare escape plans. She wasn't like Shaw or Brock. She didn't act impulsively. Every move was calculated. Every contingency planned."Look at this," Age

I thought surrendering would bring peace. I was wrong.The morning after I told Agent Park to drop the investigation, my phone rang. Unknown number. I knew before answering."Good morning, Bethany. I trust you slept well after making such a wise decision." Jessica's voice was warm. Almost friendly. Like we were still mentor and student having coffee. "But I'm afraid your decision isn't complete. There are additional terms we need to discuss.""I backed down. I told the FBI to stop investigating you. What more do you want?""I want to make sure you stay backed down. That you don't change your mind in a month or a year when you're feeling brave again. I need permanent insurance." Her voice hardened slightly. "Here are my terms. You have seventy-two hours to complete them. All of them. Or I start removing people from your life. Permanently."My blood ran cold. "What terms?""First, shut down Nott Designs. Completely. Close the company. Fire all employees. Liquidate all assets. The brand

Agent Park spent the next week unraveling Jessica Patterson's empire. Every day brought new discoveries. Each one more damning than the last.I sat in her office watching her whiteboard fill with connections. Lines connecting Jessica to Shaw. Shaw to bankrupt designers. Jessica to Jade Phoenix Investments. Jade Phoenix to dozens of fashion brands built on stolen work."This isn't just fraud," Agent Park said. She added another connection to the board. "This is organized crime. A criminal enterprise operating for forty years under the cover of legitimate business. RICO territory. Federal conspiracy. Money laundering. Tax evasion. The charges we can bring are extensive.""But you need Jessica to bring them," I said. "And she's gone.""We'll find her. She can't hide forever. No one can."But I wasn't so sure. Jessica had forty years to prepare escape plans. She wasn't like Shaw or Brock. She didn't act impulsively. Every move was calculated. Every contingency planned."Look at this," Age

We were halfway to the FBI building when my phone rang again. Unknown number. Different from the text.I almost didn't answer. But something made me pick up."Hello?""Bethany. It's been too long." Jessica Patterson's voice. Warm. Familiar. The same voice that once encouraged me. Taught me. Believed in me. "We need to talk. Face to face. Just you and me.""I have nothing to say to you.""Oh, I think you do. I think you have quite a lot to say about the USB drive you found. The one Brock so thoughtfully hid in Emma's stuffed rabbit. The one you delivered anonymously to the FBI this morning." She laughed softly. "Did you really think I wouldn't know? I have people everywhere, darling. Eyes and ears in places you can't imagine."My hands tightened on the phone. Marcus glanced over from the driver's seat, concerned. Diana leaned forward from the back seat."What do you want, Jessica?""I want to meet. To explain. You deserve to understand why things happened the way they did. Why you were

I didn't sleep that night. Kept thinking about the meeting with Agent Park. About what could go wrong. About Jessica Patterson watching from somewhere, waiting to strike.At dawn, I made a decision. I wouldn't go to Agent Park's office myself. Too risky. Too exposed. If Jessica had connections in law enforcement like Valerie suggested, showing up at the FBI building would be like announcing I had the evidence.Instead, I called Diana."I need your help. And I need you to not ask questions until after you've done what I'm asking."Diana was quiet for a moment. "That's ominous. But okay. What do you need?""I need you to deliver something to Agent Park. A USB drive. Evidence. Critical evidence. But I need you to do it anonymously. Don't tell her where you got it. Don't mention my name. Just say you received it from a concerned party and felt the FBI should have it.""Bethany, what's on this drive?""Everything. Financial records. Money laundering proof. Evidence that could destroy Shaw