Chapter 13 - Elena's Last Order
Marcus didn't shoot. For one breath, he looked more tired than dangerous.
"She told me you would say that," he whispered.
Jonas kept his hands visible. "She tells everyone what they're going to hear. It's how she makes you doubt what you see."
Mara stepped forward. "Let us play my mother's recording. Please."
Marcus lowered his weapon a fraction. Evelyn slid the chip into an auxiliary player beside the door.
Elena appeared on a tiny screen, pale and furious, her hair tied back with a hospital band.
"Victoria has taken the children," she said. "If I disappear, don't believe a document that says I gave consent. I did not. The copies are patients. The girls are my daughters. The archive contains the orders, the payments, and the names."
She leaned toward the camera.
"Jonas, if you're watching, don't bargain with her again. Get the girls out. Even if saving them means you go to prison for what you helped build."
The recording ended.
Clara looked at Jonas. "She knew you would choose the wrong thing again."
"She was usually right about me," he answered.
Marcus stared at the floor. He had a daughter outside Portland, Clara remembered from the files. A girl he'd barely seen while he worked every holiday for Victoria.
"The archive goes out," Marcus said at last. "I'll hold the corridor."
Evelyn didn't lower her guard. "Your gun stays on the floor."
He set it down, then backed toward the door.
Clara and Mara faced the two readers. Each screen displayed the same question.
DO YOU AUTHORIZE PUBLIC RELEASE OF THE ARCHIVE?
Before either could touch YES, Mara cried out. The blue lines beneath her skin flared.
On the wall appeared a new warning.
May you like
PRIMARY HOST VITALS FAILURE IMMINENT.
Victoria had found another way to reach her.
