{"id":28926,"date":"2026-10-03T15:33:36","date_gmt":"2026-10-03T15:33:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/?p=28926"},"modified":"2026-10-03T15:33:36","modified_gmt":"2026-10-03T15:33:36","slug":"part-14-maya-races-back-for-leo-and-finds-the-security-facility-empty-except-for-a-message-written-specifically-for-her","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/?p=28926","title":{"rendered":"PART 14 \u2013 Maya Races Back for Leo and Finds the Security Facility Empty Except for a Message Written Specifically for Her"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The police vehicle took corners hard enough to throw Maya against the door.<\/p>\n<p>She barely noticed.<\/p>\n<p>Davis sat beside her making calls that went unanswered.<\/p>\n<p>The secure facility where Leo had been left was only fourteen kilometers away.<\/p>\n<p>It felt farther than the Atlantic.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTry Mercer again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAgain.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Davis did.<\/p>\n<p>Voicemail.<\/p>\n<p>Maya called the number of the Spanish officer assigned to Leo.<\/p>\n<p>No answer.<\/p>\n<p>Second officer.<\/p>\n<p>No answer.<\/p>\n<p>Her mind supplied images faster than she could suppress them.<\/p>\n<p>Leo asleep beneath Davis\u2019s jacket.<\/p>\n<p>Leo wrapping his little finger around hers.<\/p>\n<p>Come back this time.<\/p>\n<p>She had promised.<\/p>\n<p>Davis watched her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDon\u2019t go somewhere you don\u2019t have evidence for.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She looked at him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy son is in a facility supervised by a man who just redirected the police team protecting me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe don\u2019t know Mercer did that intentionally.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe don\u2019t know he didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The driver accelerated.<\/p>\n<p>Maya forced herself to think operationally.<\/p>\n<p>If Mercer had betrayed them, why?<\/p>\n<p>Money?<\/p>\n<p>Blackmail?<\/p>\n<p>Nightglass involvement?<\/p>\n<p>If Mercer had not, then someone had used his credentials.<\/p>\n<p>Either possibility was dangerous.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat exactly did the redirect order say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Davis closed his eyes, reconstructing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat your tracker had moved south toward a secondary hangar.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho confirmed the order?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSpanish command said it came through the federal liaison channel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMercer\u2019s channel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut not necessarily Mercer.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Davis nodded.<\/p>\n<p>That distinction mattered.<\/p>\n<p>Maya grabbed his phone.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCall the facility\u2019s landline.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He searched.<\/p>\n<p>The number rang.<\/p>\n<p>Once.<\/p>\n<p>Twice.<\/p>\n<p>Then someone answered.<\/p>\n<p>No words.<\/p>\n<p>Maya took the phone.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHello?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Breathing.<\/p>\n<p>Then a click.<\/p>\n<p>Disconnected.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTrace it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Davis looked at her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m an airline captain, not an intelligence service.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cToday you\u2019re disappointing me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Despite everything, he almost smiled.<\/p>\n<p>The police driver spoke into his radio.<\/p>\n<p>Units ahead were approaching the facility.<\/p>\n<p>Maya listened to Spanish she understood only in pieces.<\/p>\n<p>Door open.<\/p>\n<p>No response.<\/p>\n<p>Entering.<\/p>\n<p>Then silence.<\/p>\n<p>The radio crackled.<\/p>\n<p>Officer down.<\/p>\n<p>Maya\u2019s pulse hammered.<\/p>\n<p>Another transmission.<\/p>\n<p>Second officer alive.<\/p>\n<p>Facility empty.<\/p>\n<p>No child.<\/p>\n<p>Maya closed her eyes.<\/p>\n<p>For exactly one second.<\/p>\n<p>Then she opened them.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cKeep moving.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Davis looked at her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMaya\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDo not tell me to stay calm.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI wasn\u2019t going to.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGood.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The facility occupied a converted administrative building near an airport police annex.<\/p>\n<p>Two ambulances were already outside when Maya arrived.<\/p>\n<p>She was out of the vehicle before it fully stopped.<\/p>\n<p>Davis followed.<\/p>\n<p>A Spanish officer tried to block the entrance.<\/p>\n<p>Maya pushed past.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere is he?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The officer stepped in front of her again.<\/p>\n<p>Davis spoke quickly, explaining.<\/p>\n<p>The officer relented.<\/p>\n<p>Inside, one guard lay unconscious near the reception desk.<\/p>\n<p>No obvious gunshot wound.<\/p>\n<p>A medic worked over him.<\/p>\n<p>The second officer sat against the wall with blood running from a cut over his eyebrow.<\/p>\n<p>Maya crouched in front of him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLeo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The officer recognized her.<\/p>\n<p>His face twisted with shame.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere is my son?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA federal man came.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMercer?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDescribe him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTall. Dark hair. American.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Not Mercer.<\/p>\n<p>Mercer was shorter, light-haired.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat there was a security breach and the child had to be moved.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou gave him Leo?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe had credentials.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya\u2019s anger flashed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhose credentials?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFederal liaison. He knew the transfer code.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Davis crouched beside her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat happened then?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The officer touched his bleeding forehead.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAfter they left, someone attacked us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTwo men. Masks.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy attack after Leo was gone?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The officer shook his head.<\/p>\n<p>Maya understood.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo make it look like a kidnapping.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Davis looked at her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf they wanted Leo taken quietly, they needed time before anyone realized.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The officer continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe American told the boy you sent him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya felt sick.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid Leo believe him?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe didn\u2019t want to go.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Of course he didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe asked to call you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did the man say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat you were busy with police and waiting in another building.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya gripped her knees to stop her hands from shaking.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid Leo fight?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The officer almost smiled despite the blood.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe kicked him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya closed her eyes briefly.<\/p>\n<p>Good boy.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat vehicle?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhite van. Government plate.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cReal?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Police were already checking.<\/p>\n<p>False.<\/p>\n<p>Maya stood.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCameras.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The facility\u2019s exterior security feed had been disabled eight minutes before the transfer.<\/p>\n<p>Nearby traffic cameras captured the van.<\/p>\n<p>It headed west.<\/p>\n<p>Then disappeared beneath an overpass.<\/p>\n<p>Another camera caught a similar vehicle emerging.<\/p>\n<p>Different plate.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe same van.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe decoy.<\/p>\n<p>Maya looked at every frame.<\/p>\n<p>Nothing useful.<\/p>\n<p>Then she noticed Leo through a side window in one image.<\/p>\n<p>He was not crying.<\/p>\n<p>He was looking directly out at the camera.<\/p>\n<p>His left hand pressed against the glass.<\/p>\n<p>Three fingers extended.<\/p>\n<p>Maya froze.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBack.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The technician reversed.<\/p>\n<p>Three fingers.<\/p>\n<p>Then two.<\/p>\n<p>Then one.<\/p>\n<p>Davis frowned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat is he doing?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya\u2019s throat tightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA countdown.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The next frame showed Leo pointing downward.<\/p>\n<p>Toward the van door.<\/p>\n<p>The camera angle changed.<\/p>\n<p>A small blue object lay on the road behind the vehicle.<\/p>\n<p>Maya stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHis shoe.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Leo had removed one sneaker.<\/p>\n<p>Davis understood.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019s leaving a trail.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya almost laughed through the terror.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe watches too many adventure movies.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Police searched the route.<\/p>\n<p>The shoe was recovered near the overpass.<\/p>\n<p>Inside it was a folded scrap of paper.<\/p>\n<p>A child\u2019s handwriting.<\/p>\n<p>Maya read it.<\/p>\n<p>MAN SAID WE GO TO OLD AIRPORT.<\/p>\n<p>The officer asked, \u201cWhich old airport?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya looked at Davis.<\/p>\n<p>There were several.<\/p>\n<p>Then she remembered the museum.<\/p>\n<p>Adjacent airfield.<\/p>\n<p>Kessler had escaped across a maintenance field.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe Leo had overheard them.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat else?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>On the back Leo had written:<\/p>\n<p>HE CALLED SOMEONE MR K.<\/p>\n<p>Maya\u2019s fear sharpened into certainty.<\/p>\n<p>Kessler.<\/p>\n<p>The museum confrontation had never been the real extraction.<\/p>\n<p>While Maya, Davis, Vale and police focused on Kessler, someone else used their chaos to take Leo.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d Davis asked.<\/p>\n<p>Maya knew.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe sequence.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe needs leverage.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd you haven\u2019t given him the key.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Davis stood.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen Leo is alive.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya looked at him.<\/p>\n<p>He did not soften the statement.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe needs you cooperative. That means he needs Leo alive.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She nodded once.<\/p>\n<p>Useful fact.<\/p>\n<p>Hold onto useful facts.<\/p>\n<p>A Spanish commander entered with a tablet.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe located the white van.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAbandoned twelve kilometers west.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLeo?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBlood?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNone.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTracks?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnother vehicle picked them up.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat vehicle?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cUnknown.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya walked to the reception desk.<\/p>\n<p>A sheet of paper lay on the floor.<\/p>\n<p>Something about it caught her eye.<\/p>\n<p>Too clean.<\/p>\n<p>While everything else nearby had been disturbed, the paper sat squarely beneath a chair.<\/p>\n<p>She picked it up.<\/p>\n<p>One sentence had been printed in English.<\/p>\n<p>BRING WHAT GABRIEL GAVE YOU.<\/p>\n<p>Below was a time.<\/p>\n<p>14:00.<\/p>\n<p>And coordinates.<\/p>\n<p>Davis read them.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Police mapped the location.<\/p>\n<p>An old agricultural airstrip south of Madrid.<\/p>\n<p>Maya stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe wants the sequence.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf I bring it, he gives Leo back.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Davis did not answer.<\/p>\n<p>They both knew there was no reason to trust that promise.<\/p>\n<p>Maya folded the paper.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere is Mercer?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Nobody knew.<\/p>\n<p>His phone remained offline.<\/p>\n<p>His last verified location had been the airport evidence facility shortly before Kessler stole the audit package.<\/p>\n<p>Then nothing.<\/p>\n<p>Davis said, \u201cMaybe he was taken too.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMaybe.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou still think he\u2019s involved.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think someone used his channel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Police technicians checked the federal communication logs.<\/p>\n<p>The museum redirect order came through Mercer\u2019s authenticated device.<\/p>\n<p>Maya stared at the result.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCould it be spoofed?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDifficult,\u201d the technician said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot impossible.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere is the device now?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOffline.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya looked at Davis.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe either helped them or lost control of his equipment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNeither is good.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A federal message arrived.<\/p>\n<p>Mercer\u2019s rental vehicle had been found near the airport.<\/p>\n<p>Driver door unlocked.<\/p>\n<p>Phone inside.<\/p>\n<p>No Mercer.<\/p>\n<p>Maya asked, \u201cBlood?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNone.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The phone itself was wiped.<\/p>\n<p>Not powered off.<\/p>\n<p>Wiped.<\/p>\n<p>Someone had intentionally erased it.<\/p>\n<p>Maya\u2019s suspicions shifted again.<\/p>\n<p>A traitor might destroy evidence.<\/p>\n<p>A captive\u2019s device might be destroyed by whoever took him.<\/p>\n<p>No conclusion yet.<\/p>\n<p>Vale was transferred under heavy guard from the museum to another secure location.<\/p>\n<p>Cole survived his wound.<\/p>\n<p>The captured gunman refused to speak.<\/p>\n<p>Kessler remained missing.<\/p>\n<p>And Leo had vanished into a network that seemed to anticipate every official response.<\/p>\n<p>Maya returned to Gabriel\u2019s sequence.<\/p>\n<p>Seven-Bravo.<\/p>\n<p>Nine-Delta.<\/p>\n<p>Four-Charlie.<\/p>\n<p>Twelve-Echo.<\/p>\n<p>Then?<\/p>\n<p>She closed her eyes.<\/p>\n<p>Cockpit noise returned in memory.<\/p>\n<p>Gabriel laughing over radio.<\/p>\n<p>Come on, Major, that one was easy.<\/p>\n<p>She had replied that if he wanted memory games, he should join a circus.<\/p>\n<p>Next group.<\/p>\n<p>Two-Foxtrot.<\/p>\n<p>Then Six-Alpha.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe.<\/p>\n<p>She needed the entire key before the meeting.<\/p>\n<p>Not to give Kessler.<\/p>\n<p>To control what happened when he believed she would.<\/p>\n<p>Davis watched her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re remembering.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSome.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow many?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMaybe six out of twelve.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCan Gabriel\u2019s audio fill the rest?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf we recover the raw recording.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya looked at Vale.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe might know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A secure call was arranged.<\/p>\n<p>Vale appeared pale on video, arm restrained.<\/p>\n<p>Maya wasted no time.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGabriel\u2019s mission audio.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Vale frowned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat about it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cKessler recovered fragments. Where is the full recording?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMilitary archive.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCan you access it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho can?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Vale hesitated.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMercer.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya\u2019s eyes narrowed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow would a federal liaison have access to classified Air Force mishap audio?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Vale looked surprised she did not know.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDaniel Mercer wasn\u2019t always Justice.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat was he?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAir Force intelligence.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Davis looked at Maya.<\/p>\n<p>Vale continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe worked Nightglass oversight during the final year.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya felt a chill.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMercer was part of Nightglass?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOfficially, counterintelligence review.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid Gabriel know him?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The room went still.<\/p>\n<p>Maya leaned closer to the screen.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow well?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEnough to send him evidence.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya\u2019s pulse shifted.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMercer never told me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Vale\u2019s expression darkened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen you should ask why.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya ended the call.<\/p>\n<p>She stood silent.<\/p>\n<p>Davis asked, \u201cWhat are you thinking?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat Mercer knew Gabriel before the crash.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd hid it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe had access to the audio.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd his authenticated channel redirected the museum team.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya hated the conclusion taking shape.<\/p>\n<p>Still, she forced herself not to adopt it prematurely.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFind Mercer first.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A call came from Spanish police thirty seconds later.<\/p>\n<p>They had.<\/p>\n<p>A traffic patrol discovered a man walking beside a rural road near Barajas.<\/p>\n<p>Disoriented.<\/p>\n<p>Bruised.<\/p>\n<p>Barefoot.<\/p>\n<p>Daniel Mercer.<\/p>\n<p>He had been drugged.<\/p>\n<p>When he regained enough coherence to speak, he asked one question.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere\u2019s the boy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya arrived at the hospital twenty minutes later.<\/p>\n<p>Mercer lay beneath a thin blanket with an IV in his arm.<\/p>\n<p>One eye was swollen.<\/p>\n<p>Maya stood beside the bed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou knew Gabriel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mercer looked at her.<\/p>\n<p>Even drugged, his expression revealed recognition.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI couldn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat answer expired eighteen months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mercer swallowed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGabriel contacted me three days before he died.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya\u2019s hands curled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWith what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEvidence.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNightglass?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did you do?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI told him I needed twenty-four hours.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mercer closed his eyes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWithin twenty-four hours, his aircraft was dead.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Silence.<\/p>\n<p>Maya\u2019s voice lowered.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you leak his complaint?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mercer opened his eyes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen how did Kessler know Gabriel had contacted you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been trying to answer that ever since.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya leaned closer.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLeo is gone.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mercer went pale.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cKessler took him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mercer tried to sit up.<\/p>\n<p>Pain stopped him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMaya\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI need Gabriel\u2019s raw flight audio.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mercer stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow do you know about that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause Kessler is missing part of the certification key.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mercer\u2019s expression changed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know enough.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He looked toward the door.<\/p>\n<p>Then back to Maya.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe raw file isn\u2019t in the archive anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere is it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mercer hesitated.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGabriel gave me a copy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya\u2019s heart pounded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDo you still have it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mercer swallowed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn a secure repository outside Washington.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat does me no good at two this afternoon.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He looked at her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut I memorized the missing section.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maya froze.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause Gabriel made me play the same stupid game.\u201d<\/p>\n<hr>\n<h2><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/?p=28927\">Click here to continue reading: PART 15: Mercer Reconstructs Gabriel\u2019s Hidden Key, While Maya Builds a Rescue Plan That Depends on Giving Kessler Exactly What He Wants<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The police vehicle took corners hard enough to throw Maya against the door. She barely noticed. Davis sat beside her making calls that went unanswered. 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