Chapter 5 - THE WOMAN WHO KNEW HIS SECRETBy midnight, the rain had stopped.
The streets of Washington glittered beneath the city lights.
The boss drove through Georgetown without turning on the radio.
The girl sat in the back seat.
Her plush bunny rested in her lap.
Frank was secured safely with a trusted security team.
The boss had given them strict instructions.
No police.
No federal agents.
Nobody else.
He didn't know whom he could trust.
The girl watched him through the rearview mirror.
“You're scared.”
He almost laughed.
“I don't get scared.”
“Yes, you do.”
He looked at her.
“How?”
“You blink slower.”
He said nothing.
They arrived at an abandoned federal archive building.
Room 17 was underground.
The boss entered alone.
The lights came on one by one.
A woman sat at the end of the room.
Late forties.
Dark coat.
Silver-streaked hair.
Calm expression.
He recognized her instantly.
“Claire.”
She smiled sadly.
“You finally came.”
He stopped several feet away.
“You're supposed to be in witness protection.”
“I was.”
“Then who found you?”
She looked at the security camera.
“They did.”
The boss stepped closer.
“Where is Ethan?”
Claire's expression changed.
“You still care about him.”
“He tried to kill me.”
“No.”
She shook her head.
“He tried to warn you.”
The boss's jaw tightened.
“About what?”
Claire placed a file on the table.
He opened it.
Inside were photographs.
Politicians.
Business leaders.
Military officers.
Judges.
Federal contractors.
Every photograph had the same red mark in the corner.
The boss stared.
“What is this?”
“A network.”
“Whose?”
Claire leaned forward.
“Yours.”
His eyes hardened.
“That isn't possible.”
“You built the security architecture.”
He looked at her.
“And someone used it.”
She nodded.
“For years.”
He turned another page.
Then stopped.
A photograph of the little girl.
Taken months earlier.
She was standing beside her mother.
The mother was smiling.
The girl wasn't.
Behind them stood Ethan.
The boss stared at the image.
“Where was this taken?”
Claire didn't answer.
He looked closer.
A familiar landmark appeared in the background.
The White House.
His blood ran cold.
The girl had been near Washington months before anyone knew she was missing.
Claire whispered:
“Her mother discovered the ledger.”
“What ledger?”
“The names.”
“Whose names?”
“Everyone who paid.”
The boss closed the file.
“And Ethan?”
Claire's eyes filled with something resembling regret.
“He stole the ledger.”
The lights went out.
A gunshot echoed somewhere upstairs.
The boss immediately moved toward Claire.
“Down!”
They dropped behind the table.
Another shot.
Then silence.
The boss whispered:
“Where's the girl?”
Claire stared at him.
“What girl?”
He looked toward the door.
May you like
His face changed.
The little girl had never been in the car.
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