Chapter 5 - The Message Beneath Atlas’s Collar
Master Sergeant Cole slowly approached the kennel.
Atlas watched him.
Not threatening.
Waiting.
That was unusual.
Dr. Porter whispered:
“He trusts her.”
Nobody corrected her.
Because everyone saw it.
Cole carefully examined the collar.
“There’s something attached.”
Colonel Willis stepped closer.
“Do not remove it yet.”
The command surprised everyone.
Usually, he wanted answers immediately.
Now he was cautious.
That told me enough.
Whatever was there…
He was afraid of it.
I looked at Atlas.
“You carried it all this time.”
His ears moved.
Almost like he understood.
Cole looked at me.
“Ma’am…”
I looked at him.
“What?”
“How do you know him?”
I smiled sadly.
“That’s a longer story.”
Colonel Willis stared.
“Noah never mentioned you.”
I looked at him.
“That doesn’t mean he didn’t know me.”
That sentence made him uncomfortable.
Then Atlas suddenly growled.
Everyone reacted.
But he wasn’t looking at me.
He was looking toward the entrance.
The security doors.
Someone was arriving.
Colonel Willis turned.
The doors opened.
A woman in a dark coat entered.
She carried a sealed folder.
And she knew exactly where to look.
May you like
At me.
📖 Chapter 6 reveals who the woman carrying the folder is and why she came looking for Margaret Mercer. 👇
