THE SILENT WITNESS
Chapter 3: The Chase Begins
Tessa Monroe was gasping as she and Carter took shelter in an alleyway behind a dilapidated warehouse on the edge of D.C. Rain fell from the sky as if to wash away what we had found out. Her laptop which she clung to for dear life, buzzed with encrypted information that could bring the country to its knees.
They won’t stop, Carter thought as he looked out the corner of the room. A black SUV with darkened windows went by at a slow roll, the guys inside checking out each shadow. We’re dealing with a clean up team military trained, off the books. Tessa blinked back the rain that fell into her eyes.
“You think they are put up by the President? Carter didn’t reply. That wasn’t required. President Evelyn’s cousin. She told me, Tessa said that night as she looked at the screen. My own blood. As the rain increased in intensity Carter’s phone vibrated. Unknown Number. He hesitated before answering. A distorted voice came through: Leave the girl out. This is your final chance Detective. She is marked. Revenant will erase her.
The line went dead. They reported that they were tapping my phone, I said gravely. We have to move. Now. They ran through the alley, jumped into the metro tunnels. Their boots broke the surface of the foul water as lights above flickered. In the distance they heard footsteps which echoed after them. In a secure underground bunker below the Pentagon building General Marcus Drake presented himself to a panel of five unknown figures on a holographic display. Carter has gone off the deep end, and the girl has access to the core files.
What which President? — that person asked. Drake paused. “We’ve got a traitor in our midst. Phase Two begins. Revenant goes active. In the tunnels Tessa抰 laptop notified. I got that — reports of a breach in to the backup system for which Amelia is responsible. Also a guy named ‘The Archivist’ was at the core of it and he did this from within the White House. Carter raised an eyebrow.
“The Archivist?” Whistleblower. One of the inside players. May be we have found our man. All of a sudden there was an explosion in the tunnel behind them which sent a wave of fire down the hall. “RUN!” A single word message . Truth is silent. – The Archivist.
