We moved down the gravel road in near-total darkness, guided only by the faint moonlight filtering through the trees.

Lily leaned her head against my shoulder, her breathing slowing down as exhaustion finally took over.

Owen clung to his bear, his eyes wide and fixed on the back of Ryker’s head.

“Are we safe?” Owen whispered, his voice cracking.

“We will be soon,” I said, kissing the top of his head.

I looked at Ryker in the rearview mirror, but his eyes were fixed on the road ahead.

His hands gripped the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles were white.

He was silent for the entire drive, his mind clearly working through the betrayal.

Only a handful of people had access to those encryption keys.

Marco was one of them, but I knew Marco would die before betraying Ryker.

That meant the circle of trust was even smaller than we had feared.

After forty minutes, the truck slowed down, bouncing over deep potholes.

A small wooden structure emerged from the darkness.

It was a simple log cabin, its windows dark and boarded up from the outside.