Chapter 12 - THE TRAIN THAT NEVER LEFTThe train sat beneath an abandoned maintenance shed.
Three freight cars.
One engine.
No tracks connected to the main line.
It had been left there for years.
James and Adrian entered through the rear door.
The first car was empty.
The second contained old equipment.
The third had a locked steel compartment.
From inside came a faint sound.
James.
"Connor?"
A small voice answered.
"Dad?"
James almost collapsed from relief.
He broke the lock.
Connor ran into his arms.
James held him tightly.
"Where's Elliot?"
Connor pointed toward the front.
"He got away."
James froze.
"What?"
"The woman."
"Your mom?"
Connor nodded.
"She didn't hurt me."
"Where is she?"
Connor pointed toward the engine.
"She said she had to stop someone."
Adrian suddenly shouted:
"James!"
A metallic sound echoed.
The train engine started.
James grabbed Connor.
The wheels began turning.
The abandoned train lurched forward.
Adrian ran to the controls.
Someone had activated the engine remotely.
Then flames appeared behind them.
The maintenance shed was burning.
Smoke filled the train.
James pushed Connor toward the door.
"Run!"
They jumped from the moving train onto wet gravel.
Adrian followed.
The train continued rolling.
Straight toward the locked gate at the end of the yard.
Then it stopped.
A small explosion tore through the engine.
James shielded Connor.
Silence followed.
Inside the wreckage, they found a metal case.
The final drive.
James picked it up.
Then saw something else.
A photograph.
His mother.
His father.
Elena.
And Victor Hale.
Four people standing together.
On the back:
THE FIRST NIGHT.
James opened the drive on his laptop.
Folders appeared.
Thousands.
Names.
Faces.
Bank accounts.
Property transfers.
Police reports.
But one folder carried a title:
JAMES MERCER.
He clicked it.
Inside was a photograph of James sleeping as a child.
Another showed James at school.
Another showed him at his mother's funeral.
Another showed him at seventeen.
Someone had tracked him his entire life.
Then a final video began.
His father appeared on screen.
"If you're watching this, James, I failed to protect you."
James stared.
His father's face was exhausted.
"The people behind the Mirror are not outside our family."
A pause.
"They are inside it."
His father leaned closer.
"I need you to trust one person."
James held his breath.
His father spoke a name.
The video cut out.
Connor looked at James.
"Who did he say?"
James stared at the frozen screen.
"Tommy."
Connor's face changed.
"My uncle?"
Before James could answer, headlights appeared outside.
Dozens of them.
Police cars.
News vans.
Federal agents.
And Victor Hale stepped from the first vehicle.
He raised his hands.
"James Mercer."
James stepped forward.
"You killed Elena."
Hale shook his head.
"No."
He pointed at the burned train.
"Your own family did."
Then someone behind Hale spoke.
A familiar voice.
"He's telling the truth."
James turned.
Tommy stood in the rain.
May you like
Holding a gun.
Pointed directly at Connor.
