Chapter 24 - THE FOURTH NAME
The sniper escaped into the forest before tactical teams sealed the ridge.
Miller was taken alive.
The replica drive recovered from him revealed nothing new, but the transmitter confirmed every word he had spoken inside the hangar.
Including his confession about our father.
At the military hospital, Ethan underwent surgery while Daniel received treatment for his shoulder. I sat outside the operating room with dried blood on my clothes.
Commander Keene joined me near dawn.
“Miller is requesting protective custody,” she said.
“Is he talking?”
“He gave us one name.”
“Who?”
“Senator Charles Rourke.”
I knew the name. Everyone did.
Rourke chaired the Senate committee responsible for classified defense appropriations. He had publicly praised Miller after the ambush and personally attended the memorial service for our fallen unit.
“Is there evidence?”
“Payments on Ethan’s drive connect shell companies to Rourke’s campaign network. We need more than financial patterns.”
“Where is Miller?”
“A secure federal facility.”
“Then why do you look worried?”
Keene handed me a printed incident report.
Miller had suffered a seizure during transport. Toxicology found a rare nerve agent on the lining of his handcuffs.
Someone inside the transfer team had tried to kill him.
“He survived?” I asked.
“Barely.”
The operating room doors opened.
A surgeon removed his mask.
“Your brother made it through surgery.”
I closed my eyes.
For the first time since seeing Ethan inside the sedan, I allowed myself to breathe.
The surgeon continued.
“He’ll need months of recovery, but the bullet missed his heart.”
When Ethan woke later that afternoon, I sat beside him.
His first words were, “Did Miller talk?”
“One name. Rourke.”
Ethan stared at the ceiling.
“There are four principal members of the network.”
“Miller said there were people above him.”
“Rourke controls funding. Miller controlled military access. Vance handled domestic enforcement.”
“And the fourth?”
Ethan looked toward the hospital door.
Before he could answer, Amelia entered under federal escort.
Ethan’s monitor began beeping faster.
“No,” he said.
Amelia stopped.
“What?”
Ethan turned to me.
“The fourth member isn’t Amelia.”
“Then why are you looking at her?”
“Because she worked for her.”
A woman appeared behind Amelia.
Elegant gray suit. Silver hair. Calm eyes.
I recognized her as Deputy Secretary of Defense Eleanor Shaw.
May you like
She smiled at me.
“Captain Logan,” she said. “I believe your brother has been telling stories.”
