Chapter 6: The Hunt Begins
The black SUVs closed in from both ends of the deserted highway.
Rain lashed against the windshield as Victor Hale gripped the steering wheel with trembling hands.
The burner phone buzzed again.
DON'T TAKE THE HIGHWAY.
He looked up.
The first SUV accelerated.
Its headlights filled his rearview mirror.
Victor slammed the van into reverse, spun the wheel, and veered onto a narrow service road disappearing into the woods.
The tires lost traction.
Mud sprayed into the air.
Behind him, engines roared.
They were coming.
Inside FBI Headquarters, Rebecca Monroe was pacing when her secure line rang.
She answered immediately.
"What is it?"
A breathless agent replied, "We have a problem."
"What kind of problem?"
"There was no autopsy."
Rebecca stopped walking.
"What?"
"The body never reached the medical examiner."
Her heart sank.
"The death certificate was filed using forged authorization codes."
Damian, standing nearby, caught the change in her expression.
"What happened?"
Rebecca slowly lowered the phone.
"Victor Hale was never dead."
Evelyn looked up sharply.
"Someone wanted us to believe he was."
Less than an hour later, the investigation team gathered in a secure conference room.
A digital map covered one wall.
Red markers highlighted every known property connected to Victor.
Vacation homes.
Private offices.
Safe houses.
Luxury apartments.
Rebecca crossed off one location after another.
"They've all been searched."
Damian frowned.
"Then where would Victor go?"
Evelyn stared at the map in silence.
Then her eyes settled on a small cabin near Blackwater Lake.
"There."
Rebecca looked confused.
"Why that one?"
"Because it isn't in Victor's name."
She zoomed in.
"It belongs to his late mother."
Damian nodded slowly.
"He told everyone he sold it years ago."
Evelyn shook her head.
"He lied."
At that very moment...
Victor's stolen funeral van skidded into the gravel driveway of the isolated lakeside cabin.
The building looked abandoned.
Paint peeled from the walls.
The porch sagged under years of neglect.
Victor stumbled inside, soaked and exhausted.
He locked the door behind him.
Only then did he allow himself to breathe.
His childhood memories rushed back.
This was the only place where his father had never found him.
The only place he had ever felt safe.
He searched the dusty living room until he reached the old stone fireplace.
Kneeling, he removed three loose bricks.
Behind them sat a rusted metal box.
Inside were bundles of cash.
A revolver.
And a faded photograph.
The picture showed a teenage Victor standing beside another boy.
Both were smiling.
The back of the photo contained a handwritten note.
Brothers forever. — Lucas
Victor's eyes widened.
"Lucas..."
He hadn't spoken that name in over twenty years.
Back at headquarters, forensic analysts finished examining the Project Nightfall database.
One discovery stunned everyone.
Every file contained a section labeled:
Potential Threats
Evelyn opened hers.
Only one name appeared.
Lucas Bennett
She frowned.
"I don't know anyone named Lucas Bennett."
Rebecca searched the national database.
Within seconds, a profile appeared.
Former investigative journalist.
Declared dead in a house fire eighteen years earlier.
Case closed.
Damian studied the photograph.
Something about the man's face seemed familiar.
Then his eyes widened.
"I know him."
Rebecca looked over.
"From where?"
Damian didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he walked to a cabinet and unlocked a drawer.
Inside was an old newspaper clipping.
The headline read:
Reporter Dies While Investigating Corporate Corruption
Below the headline was the same face.
Lucas Bennett.
Damian placed the clipping beside Victor's childhood photograph.
The resemblance was undeniable.
"The fire wasn't an accident," Damian said quietly.
"It happened just days before Victor founded Hale Global."
Evelyn looked at both images.
"Victor knew him."
"They grew up together."
Rebecca's expression darkened.
"Then Lucas probably discovered something he wasn't supposed to."
Suddenly, alarms echoed throughout headquarters.
An analyst shouted from across the room.
"We've got movement!"
Rebecca hurried over.
"What is it?"
"The burner phone."
Everyone froze.
"You tracked it?"
The analyst nodded.
"It just connected to a nearby cell tower."
A blinking dot appeared on the map.
Blackwater Lake.
Exactly where Evelyn had predicted.
Rebecca grabbed her jacket.
"We're going."
Damian reached for his keys.
"I'm driving."
Evelyn stood.
"So am I."
Rebecca hesitated.
"It's dangerous."
Evelyn met her gaze.
"So is letting him die before he tells us the truth."
Meanwhile, inside the cabin, Victor loaded the old revolver.
The burner phone vibrated once more.
This time there was no text.
Only an incoming call.
Unknown number.
After a long pause, he answered.
A calm voice spoke.
"You chose the wrong place."
Victor froze.
"Who's this?"
"You already know."
The voice was smooth.
Almost friendly.
"You were told to disappear."
"I tried."
"No."
The caller chuckled softly.
"You ran home."
Victor slowly looked around the cabin.
His blood ran cold.
The caller continued.
"Second window."
Victor turned.
A tiny red laser dot rested on the curtain.
Then another appeared.
And another.
Soon, more than a dozen crimson dots covered the walls of the cabin.
Snipers.
Surrounding him from every direction.
Victor backed away from the windows, his breathing growing frantic.
"What do you want?"
The voice answered without emotion.
"You know too much."
The call disconnected.
Outside, the forest fell eerily silent.
Then...
The cabin lights went out.
In the darkness, Victor tightened his grip on the revolver as footsteps crunched through the wet leaves outside.
At the same time, several miles away, Rebecca's convoy raced toward Blackwater Lake.
Evelyn stared through the rain-streaked windshield.
She had only one thought.
May you like
If they arrived even a minute too late...
The only man who knew the true leaders of the Raven Circle would disappear forever.
