Chapter 11 - THE TRAP INSIDE THE CAPITOLThe hearing was moved secretly.
Only five people knew.
At least, that was what we were told.
I arrived before sunrise.
Hayes accompanied me.
So did two federal investigators whose names were absent from Harbor's database.
The committee room looked harmless.
Wood paneling.
Water glasses.
Flags.
Microphones.
But every doorway felt dangerous.
Marcus Vale arrived unexpectedly.
That confirmed everything.
“Elena.”
He smiled.
“You didn't tell me the hearing moved.”
“I forgot.”
His eyes narrowed.
“You never forget.”
Neither did he.
We entered.
The committee chair began questioning me.
I described Camp Vora.
Sterling.
Thorne.
The extortion network.
Then I placed the ledger on the table.
Vale stopped breathing.
For one beautiful second, the most controlled man I had ever known looked terrified.
I turned toward him.
“General Vale.”
He stood.
Security moved.
Vale reached inside his jacket.
Hayes tackled him before anyone else reacted.
A small encrypted device skidded across the floor.
Not a weapon.
A remote wipe trigger.
Vale hadn't come to kill me.
He had come to destroy the evidence.
Agents restrained him.
He looked up from the carpet.
“You don't understand what Harbor prevents.”
I approached.
“Explain it.”
“Wars.”
His voice trembled.
“Coups. Economic collapses. Terror attacks. We control dangerous people before dangerous people control the country.”
“By murdering soldiers?”
“By sacrificing dozens to save millions.”
I stared at the man who had taught me integrity.
“You became exactly what you claimed to protect us from.”
Vale smiled bitterly.
“No, Elena.”
He looked toward the senators.
“I'm only the accountant.”
The room went silent.
May you like
Then he said the words I had feared most.
“You still haven't met the people who own Harbor.”
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