Chapter 6 - The Men Who Came Looking for the TruthMy training took over before fear had time to become anything useful.
“Mom, get behind me. Tyler, take the back hallway and stay low.”
Dad opened his mouth to argue.
I cut him off.
“Now.”
For once, he obeyed.
I moved toward the staircase and listened. Two sets of footsteps. One moving through the living room, another near the kitchen. Their voices were controlled, practiced, and entirely too calm for men who had just broken into a private home.
“Daniel Hayes,” the first man called. “We know you're inside.”
I signaled to Tyler to take our mother into the room at the rear of the house.
Then I reached for the secure phone in my pocket and triggered the emergency contact protocol. I couldn't know how quickly the response team would arrive, but I could make sure someone knew where to look.
The first intruder appeared at the foot of the stairs.
He wore dark clothes and gloves. His face was partly concealed by a cap, but his posture gave him away. He wasn't a burglar. He moved too carefully, scanning the corners before advancing.
He looked up.
For a moment, neither of us moved.
Then his eyes dropped to the insignia visible beneath my open jacket.
His expression changed.
“Colonel Hayes.”
I kept one hand on the railing.
“Who are you?”
“Someone trying to prevent a serious mistake.”
“You broke into my parents' house.”
“We were told the documents were here.”
“By whom?”
He glanced toward the hallway.
“That's not important.”
“It's the only thing that matters.”
He took a step forward.
I didn't move.
Behind him, I heard a second man opening drawers.
“Where is the file?” the first man asked.
“I don't know what you're talking about.”
“Your father does.”
“Then ask him.”
“We did.”
“And?”
His jaw tightened.
“He refuses to cooperate.”
A bitter laugh escaped me.
“That's the first honest thing I've heard about him tonight.”
The man shifted his weight.
I recognized the movement. He was weighing whether he could intimidate me into stepping aside.
He had made his decision before he entered the house.
He simply hadn't expected me to be standing between him and his objective.
A second voice came from the kitchen.
“She's here.”
The first man's eyes never left mine.
“Move, Colonel.”
“No.”
“Don't make this difficult.”
“You've already broken into a civilian home. You've threatened the occupants. The difficult part began when you came through the door.”
He reached inside his jacket.
I raised my hand.
“Don't.”
He hesitated.
A siren sounded in the distance.
His attention flickered toward the window.
That was enough.
I used the moment to move away from the staircase and draw him into the open space by the front door. He followed, abandoning his careful approach. The second man appeared behind him, holding a document folder.
My father stepped out of the hallway.
“Daniel,” the first man said, “give us the original.”
Dad looked at the folder.
Then at me.
For a second, I thought he was going to surrender whatever they wanted just to make the danger disappear.
Instead, he shook his head.
“I don't have it.”
The second man laughed.
“That's a lie.”
“You said the copies would be enough.”
The room went silent.
I turned toward Dad.
“What copies?”
He realized what he had said.
The first man grabbed his arm.
“You were supposed to keep your mouth shut.”
Dad jerked away.
“Get your hands off me.”
The man shoved him against the wall.
I moved instantly, but the second intruder stepped into my path.
He was larger than the first and looked considerably less interested in conversation.
Before either man could advance, the front door flew open.
“Federal agents! Hands where we can see them!”
The intruders froze.
The next several seconds became a blur of commands, movement, and officers flooding the living room. Both men were restrained before they could reach the hallway.
My mother emerged from the back room, pale and shaking. Tyler followed, holding her shoulders.
Dad remained against the wall, breathing hard.
I approached him.
“What copies?”
He looked away.
“Rebecca, please.”
“What did you give Northstar?”
“Nothing.”
“Then why did you say the copies would be enough?”
He rubbed both hands over his face.
“I was trying to make them leave.”
“You were negotiating with men who broke into the house.”
“I had no choice.”
“There is always a choice.”
He laughed bitterly.
“Not when people you love are in danger.”
I wanted to tell him that was exactly what he had taught me wrong about love. That protecting someone didn't mean taking away their choices, forging their records, or burying their achievements.
Instead, I asked the only question that mattered.
“What is in the original file?”
Dad stared at me.
Then he looked at the federal agents, who were searching the intruders' bags.
“One name,” he said.
“Whose?”
He swallowed.
“A man who was never supposed to be involved in Black Lantern.”
“Who?”
My father whispered the name.
I didn't recognize it.
But one of the agents standing near the doorway did.
He stopped moving.
Then he turned slowly toward us.
“Ma'am,” he said, “that name belongs to a former intelligence officer who died six years ago.”
Dad shook his head.
“He didn't die.”
The agent went still.
“What did you say?”
“I said he didn't die.”
Dad looked at me, and I saw years of fear reflected in his eyes.
“The man who contacted me today claimed to be that officer. He said he had proof that the original report had been falsified.”
“Who was he?” I asked.
Dad's voice cracked.
“His name was Martin Vale.”
The room became silent.
General Mercer had mentioned the retired investigator and civilian analyst connected to the old inquiry. Martin Vale was the analyst who had supposedly died six years earlier.
A man officially declared dead.
A man whose name had been linked to a classified archive.
A man my father claimed had called him that afternoon.
One of the federal agents stepped away to make a call.
I watched the intruders being led outside.
Then I turned back to Dad.
“Did you know he was alive?”
“No.”
“Did you know someone was using Grant's credentials?”
“No.”
“Did you know why they wanted the file?”
He closed his eyes.
“Yes.”
The word was barely audible.
My stomach tightened.
“Why?”
“Because the file proves who gave them the information that compromised Black Lantern.”
“And who was that?”
Dad looked directly at me.
For a moment, he seemed ready to say it.
Then his phone buzzed again.
A new message appeared on the screen.
I read it over his shoulder.
THE ORIGINAL IS GONE. IF YOU WANT YOUR SON TO LIVE, BRING VIPER TO THE OLD NORTHSTAR FACILITY BEFORE SUNRISE. COME ALONE.
Tyler was standing behind us.
My father turned so sharply that he nearly dropped the phone.
I looked toward my brother.
He was staring at the message.
His face was white.
“Why do they want me?” Tyler whispered.
Nobody answered.
Because we all understood the same terrible possibility.
May you like
Whatever my father had done eighteen years ago, someone had decided the debt was finally due.
And they intended to collect it through my brother.
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