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Chapter 51
The morning of the exposure operation arrived with unseasonable rain. Water drummed against the warehouse roof in steady rhythm, creating white noise that should have been soothing but somehow felt ominous.Jordan hadn't slept. She'd spent the final hours triple-checking data, verifying sources, ensuring nothing in the database could be discredited or dismissed. Her eyes were red-rimmed, but her focus remained sharp."Final count," she said, pulling up summary statistics. "Four hundred and seventeen Conclave members identified across forty-three countries. Two hundred and sixty shell companies and fronts. One hundred and twelve government officials with confirmed connections. Seventy-eight major operations documented with supporting evidence.""And it's all verified?""Triple verified. Every name has at least two independent sources. Every operation has documentary or testimonial evidence. This isn't speculation, it's fact."Agent Chen reviewed the protection protocols one more time.
Chapter 50
The next forty-eight hours blurred into a continuous cycle of coffee, data analysis, and paranoid security checks. Jordan built her database with obsessive precision, cross-referencing every piece of intelligence we'd gathered. Marcus coordinated with federal tactical teams, establishing response protocols for various threat scenarios. Agent Chen managed the political dimension, keeping the Director informed while building support among other agencies.I did everything and nothing helping Jordan with data verification, discussing security with Marcus, strategizing with Chen. Mostly, I tried to see patterns others might miss, connections that would make the database more than just an information dump.On the second night, Jordan called me to her workstation."Look at this," she said, gesturing to a complex network diagram filling her center monitor. "I've been mapping Conclave connections based on financial transactions, communication intercepts, and testimony from defectors. See these
Chapter 49
By afternoon, we'd relocated to a new safe house, a converted warehouse in an industrial district that had seen better days. The federal government worked fast when properly motivated. Within hours, they'd installed secure communications, defensive systems, and enough computing equipment to run a small data center.Jordan immediately claimed the largest workstation, spreading her files across three monitors. Marcus established a perimeter check routine, old military habits resurfacing. Agent Chen coordinated with federal teams scattered across the country, building a real-time intelligence picture.I stood in the center of it all, feeling the weight of thirty days pressing down."We need to prioritize," I said, gathering everyone around a central table. "The Conclave is massive, decentralized, well-funded. We can't fight them everywhere at once. So where do we hit them where it hurts most?""Their money," Jordan said immediately. "Everything runs on funding. Cut off their resources, y
Chapter 48
The FBI Director's face filled the screen, his expression unreadable. Behind him, I could see other officials, people I recognized from news coverage. The Attorney General. The Deputy Director of National Intelligence. This wasn't just a debriefing. This was a judgment."Mr. Vale," the Director began, "in the past twenty-four hours, you've survived a military-style assault, commandeered federal communications equipment, and apparently prevented a coordinated purge that could have decimated our witness protection program. Some of my people think you're a hero. Others think you're a liability who attracts exactly the kind of attention we can't afford."I kept my expression neutral. "Which category do you fall into, Director?""I think you're both. And that's the problem." He leaned forward. "The Conclave just demonstrated capabilities that frankly terrify us. They mounted simultaneous operations across seventeen sites with military precision. They had access to jamming technology that s
Chapter 47
The federal facility looked like a war zone in the morning light. Scorch marks blackened the eastern wall where the Conclave's assault team had tried to breach. Bullet casings littered the ground like fallen leaves. Emergency crews worked methodically, documenting evidence, repairing damage, treating the wounded.I'd been awake for thirty-six hours straight. My body screamed for rest, but my mind wouldn't stop racing.Agent Chen found me in what used to be the facility's conference room, now serving as a makeshift command center. Maps covered every surface. Laptop screens glowed with intelligence reports from federal offices across the country."You look like hell," she said, setting down two cups of coffee. Steam rose in lazy spirals."Feel worse." I accepted the coffee gratefully. "Status update?""Mixed. The purge hit seventeen locations simultaneously. We disrupted most of them thanks to Jordan's warning, but three sites were completely overrun before they could respond. We lost f
Chapter 46
The explosions had breached the facility's outer perimeter, but the inner structure held. For now.Agent Chen moved with military precision, organizing her agents into defensive positions. "We fortify and hold until reinforcements arrive. Tactical teams are en route.""How long?" Marcus asked, already positioning himself near one of the emergency exits."Twenty minutes."Through the security monitors, those still functioning, I could see at least thirty attackers surrounding the building. Professional operators in tactical gear, moving with coordination that suggested military or special operations training."These aren't typical council enforcers," I observed. "This is a professional assault team.""Conclave has deep pockets," Agent Chen said grimly. "They can hire the best. Katherine, get your people away from the windows. Jordan, can you establish any external communication?"Jordan was already working her laptop, which had battery backup. "They're jamming everything, cell, radio,
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