Chapter 17 - Emma
Claire made a sound Daniel had never heard from another human being.
Half sob, half scream.
"Emma."
The girl on the screen looked thinner than she should have been, but her eyes were clear.
She looked straight into the camera.
"Aunt Claire?"
Claire collapsed into a chair.
Margaret smiled.
"Family reunion. Twelve minutes."
The call ended.
Price took control.
"We move now. Tactical units are already en route to the mill. Daniel, you stay behind the line."
"No."
"This is not negotiable."
"Margaret expects me. If I don't appear, she may panic."
Price cursed under his breath.
Marcus held up the hard drive. "Give her a clone."
The technician had already made one for analysis.
"Can we corrupt it?" Daniel asked.
"Make it look real for a few minutes, then lock?"
The technician nodded. "Maybe."
They loaded a decoy copy with an encrypted shutdown trigger.
Daniel took it.
Claire caught his arm.
"I should go."
"No."
"She's my mother."
"Exactly."
"And Rebecca is my sister. Emma is there because of me."
Daniel looked at her.
For days he had been angry enough to forget the woman he married.
Now he saw both versions of her at once: the young woman who had betrayed her sister, and the mother who stood between Lily and danger in the garage.
"Stay with Lily," he said. "Do one thing right without making it about fixing the past."
Claire cried silently.
Then she nodded.
At the old paper mill, Daniel walked alone toward the east entrance carrying the decoy drive in a clear plastic bag.
Price's team surrounded the property beyond sight.
Inside, rusted machinery groaned in the wind.
A single hanging work light illuminated Margaret.
Rebecca and Emma were beside her.
Rose stood behind a man with a gun.
Margaret held out her hand.
"The archive."
Daniel raised the bag.
"Let Rose walk to me first."
Margaret smiled.
"You still think you're negotiating."
A click sounded behind Daniel.
May you like
Detective Morris stepped out of the shadows and pressed a gun to the back of his head.
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