The rain followed them all the way to the river.Ethan sat in the passenger seat of Vale's battered sedan, staring through the windshield as Blackridge disappeared behind sheets of water.Olivia sat beside Mason in the back.Nobody spoke.The discovery about Emily had changed everything.Ethan had spent years believing his sister was simply caught in the aftermath of his case. Now he understood that she had been part of the conspiracy's calculations long before his arrest.He turned toward Vale.“Where are we going?”“St. Vincent Medical Archives.”Ethan frowned.“That facility was shut down years ago.”“Officially.”Mason looked up from his laptop.“Nothing stays shut down in Blackridge.”Vale nodded.“Especially when powerful people need somewhere to hide things.”They drove for another twenty minutes before Vale pulled into an abandoned industrial district.The building ahead looked forgotten.Broken windows.Rusting fences.A faded sign hanging above the entrance.ST. VINCENT MEDI

Blackridge State Penitentiary appeared through the rain like a dead fortress.Ethan watched it from the back seat of Donovan's car.The same walls.The same watchtowers.The same floodlights sweeping across the grounds.Three years ago, he had escaped through those walls as a convicted murderer.Tonight, he was going back voluntarily.“You're sure this is the place?” Olivia asked.Donovan nodded.“The ledger was transferred into the old records vault beneath the prison.”Mason looked up from his laptop.“According to the system, that vault doesn't exist.”“That's because it was removed from the official blueprints.”Ethan stared at Donovan.“How do you know about it?”Donovan kept his eyes on the road.“Because I helped build the security around it.”The car slowed near an abandoned service road.Donovan killed the headlights.“We walk from here.”They climbed out.Cold rain struck Ethan's face.He pulled his hood over his head and looked toward the prison.The place brought back memo

The photograph was three years old.Ethan Carter knew that because he had taken it himself.He stared at the image on the screen while rain tapped against the apartment window. The picture showed a man walking into a private club in the Financial Core. His face was partly hidden beneath a dark coat, but there was no mistaking him.Ethan zoomed in.His stomach tightened.“That's impossible.”Olivia looked up from the couch. “What?”Ethan turned the laptop toward her.She studied the photograph for several seconds before her expression changed.“Who is that?”“Michael Lawson's deputy.”“Lawson's deputy?” Olivia asked. “I thought he disappeared after the arrests.”“He did.”Ethan pointed at the photograph.“But this picture was taken six months after he supposedly disappeared.”Olivia stood and moved closer.The man's name was Marcus Vale.Before the conspiracy collapsed, Vale had been one of Lawson's most trusted intelligence officers. He had handled communications between government of

Jack Donovan was waiting in a dark garage when Ethan arrived.He stood beside an old sedan with one hand pressed against his wounded shoulder. The blood had stopped, but his face was pale.“You came back,” Donovan said.Ethan closed the garage door behind him.“I need answers.”Donovan studied his face.“About what?”“Marcus Vale.”The older detective went still.Ethan noticed.“You know the name.”“Everyone in intelligence knows the name.”“Vale said you were connected to the Architect.”Donovan looked away.“And you believed him?”“I don't know what to believe.”“That makes two of us.”Olivia stepped forward.“We found photographs of Ethan's father with Lawson and Blackwood.”Donovan's expression changed.“Your father?”Ethan placed the photographs on the hood of the car.Donovan picked them up.For several seconds, he said nothing.Then he sighed.“I was hoping you'd never see these.”Ethan's jaw tightened.“You knew?”“Not everything.”“But something.”Donovan put the photographs

By dawn, Donovan was stable enough to be moved.Ethan stood beside his bed while Emily checked the monitors.“We can't leave him here alone,” Ethan said.“I'll stay.”Emily shook her head.“No. You need to find that key.”Ethan looked at her.“You're sure about this?”“My whole life, I thought Dad died because he got unlucky.”She lowered her voice.“Now I know better.”Olivia entered the room carrying two cups of coffee.“I heard you found something.”Ethan nodded.“Dad left a key inside the old police headquarters.”Olivia handed him a cup.“Then that's where we're going.”Mason appeared behind her.“I've already pulled the building plans.”He placed his laptop on the table.“The old evidence room is underground. Most of the building has no power, but the security system was never completely removed.”Ethan studied the blueprint.“How do we get inside?”Mason smiled.“I found three entrances.”“Which one is safest?”“None.”Ethan sighed.“Good.”Emily looked at him.“Ethan.”He turn