Unraveled Lies

Back at the safe house, the mood was a strange mix of exhaustion and exhilaration. They had stopped the blackout, but the confrontation with Ryan had made one thing painfully clear—this war was far from over. Nexus was wounded, but not defeated. And Ryan, more dangerous than ever, had vanished once again.

Sienna hovered beside Lena, helping her ease onto the couch as Evelyn disinfected the wound. Blood had soaked through the makeshift bandage, but Lena brushed off the pain.

“I’ve had worse,” she muttered through gritted teeth.

“You almost died,” Dominic said, his voice low. “That was too close.”

Lena met his gaze, something unspoken flickering between them. “We got out. That’s all that matters.”

Dominic stood by the window, watching the city stir back to life. The lights were still on. Power stations stable. But the streets buzzed with unease. The news hadn’t yet broken what had really happened the night before—and Nexus still held the narrative.

“We need to go public,” Sienna said, her fingers flying across her keyboard. “I have enough data to prove Nexus’s involvement in the power grid sabotage. Financial records, intercepted messages, surveillance footage. But it has to come from the right source.”

Dominic turned. “If we publish it ourselves, they’ll spin it. Say it’s fake. We need someone credible. Someone the public already trusts.”

Evelyn tapped her phone. “I know a journalist. Valerie Monroe. She’s been sniffing around Nexus for months, but couldn’t get the full picture. If we give her everything, she’ll blow this wide open.”

“Set the meeting,” Dominic said without hesitation. “But we’re not walking into another trap. Full security.”

Sienna paused. “There’s one more thing… something I found in the deeper encrypted files.”

Everyone turned toward her.

She looked nervous, which wasn’t like her.

“They weren’t just planning a blackout. That was only step one.”

Dominic’s eyes narrowed. “Go on.”

“There’s a secondary protocol. Something called Project Echo. It’s not fully active yet, but… it’s some kind of AI surveillance upgrade—an autonomous system Nexus was building. If it goes live, they won’t need human agents anymore. They’ll be able to monitor, track, and eliminate threats in real-time.”

“You mean like us?” Lena asked, her tone dry.

Sienna nodded grimly. “Exactly.”

Dominic ran a hand through his hair. “So the blackout was the distraction.”

“And Project Echo is the real plan,” Evelyn added.

“Can we shut it down?” Lena asked.

Sienna exhaled. “Only if we locate the core server. The data I have shows it’s mobile—probably hidden in a secure convoy. Constantly moving so it can’t be hit.”

Dominic stared at the wall, calculating. “Then we find the convoy. And we take it out before they launch the system.”

⸻

Later that day, the team met with Valerie Monroe in an underground parking garage, shielded from surveillance. She was sharp-eyed, her posture stiff with anticipation.

“You’re late,” she said.

“Traffic,” Evelyn replied dryly.

Valerie’s eyes darted to the encrypted drive Sienna handed her. “Is this what I think it is?”

Dominic nodded. “It’s proof. Everything you need to expose Nexus. But there’s a price.”

Valerie narrowed her eyes. “What kind of price?”

“Your protection. You go public, they’ll come after you. You need to be ready for that.”

“I’ve been ready,” she said, jaw tight. “But you’re right—I’ll need help.”

“You’ll have it,” Dominic assured. “We’ll keep a team near you. Just don’t hesitate once you go live.”

Valerie slipped the drive into her coat. “They won’t know what hit them.”

As she disappeared into the shadows, Sienna sighed. “One match. Let’s hope it lights the fire.”

⸻

Back at the hideout, an alert flashed on Sienna’s screen.

She swore. “They know we have the Echo files. They’re scrambling the convoy routes.”

“Can you still trace them?” Dominic asked.

“Barely. But I might be able to narrow it down based on satellite patterns and timing intervals. It’ll take hours.”

“Then start now,” he said.

Lena rose from the couch, despite her injury. “We need eyes on the ground too. I’ll go.”

“No,” Dominic said, too quickly. “You need rest.”

“I’m fine.”

“You were shot.”

“And I’m still breathing,” she snapped.

There was silence. Evelyn cleared her throat. “We’ll all go. Split into two teams. One tracks the digital trail. The other hunts for physical movement. If that convoy exists, we’ll find it.”

Dominic finally relented. “Fine. But we move at dawn.”

⸻

As the night wore on, Sienna worked in silence, maps flickering on her screen. Dominic sat beside her, eyes dark with worry.

“You ever think about what comes after this?” he asked softly.

Sienna didn’t look up. “After what?”

“After Nexus. After Echo. After… all of this.”

She paused. “No. Because if I start thinking about it, I might stop fighting for it.”

Dominic nodded slowly. “Fair enough.”

⸻

Elsewhere in the city, Ryan sat in a high-rise office, watching footage from the failed blackout mission. His expression unreadable. Cold.

“Project Echo is ahead of schedule,” one of his advisors reported. “We can launch within 72 hours.”

“Make it 48,” Ryan replied. “I want this city begging for control.”

⸻

Back at the safe house, the team gathered at sunrise. Sienna had a lead.

“The convoy passed through the west district two hours ago. Unmarked, armored, three vehicles. They’re headed north.”

Dominic looked around at his team—bruised, tired, determined.

“This is it,” he said. “We stop Echo, or everything we’ve done will be for nothing.”

No one flinched.

They had reached the edge of the storm.

And they were ready to walk into it.