Chapter 28

Chapter 28
The cold night air hit us like a slap the moment we burst through the side exit of the data center. Alarms still howled behind us, red lights flickering through the trees as we sprinted into the thicket of forest that bordered the facility.

014’s breath came in short, sharp gasps beside me. She was fast, nimble—quicker than I remembered. Adrenaline will do that.

We didn’t stop running until the lights behind us faded and the ground turned soft with moss and fallen leaves.

Then we crouched in the shadows, backs pressed to a tree trunk, hearts pounding.

“Did he make it out?” she whispered.

I shook my head. “I don’t know.”

And I hated not knowing.

The man—our ally, the one who had led us into that building—had vanished after throwing himself toward the guards to buy us time. It had been reckless. Heroic. And if he hadn’t done it, we’d both be dead.

014 wiped the sweat from her brow, her face pale in the moonlight. “What if he was captured?”

“Then they’ll try to get everything out of him,” I said. “But I don’t think he’s the type to talk.”

She nodded grimly.

We sat in silence for a moment. The forest was quiet, the kind of quiet that made every sound feel too loud—twigs snapping underfoot, leaves rustling overhead, our own breathing amplified against the hush.

“We need a new plan,” I said eventually. “If their comms are down, they’ll be scrambling. We need to use that window while we still can.”

“Go where?”

I pulled out the slip of paper he had given me just before we left. A name. An address. Coordinates scribbled in shaky handwriting.

“He said if anything happened, we’d find help here,” I murmured.

014 leaned over to read it, squinting. “You trust it?”

“No. But I don’t have anything else to trust right now.”

We moved under cover of night, following the river as it curved toward the edge of the valley. The terrain became steeper, rougher. I was grateful for the silence between us. Words would’ve felt like too much.

After hours of hiking, we reached the road. It was empty, lined by pine trees that loomed like sentinels in the moonlight.

I raised my hand, signaling 014 to stop.

A low hum.

Lights approaching.

We ducked behind the trees as a black SUV rolled past, its windows tinted, its headlights casting long, creeping shadows across the forest floor.

“Do you think they’re looking for us?” 014 whispered.

“They’re always looking.”

We waited until the SUV was gone, then crossed the road and followed the coordinates deeper into the hills.

Eventually, we found the cabin.

It was built into the hillside, half-hidden by overgrown brush and ivy, with a rusted metal roof and a single light glowing behind blackout curtains.

014 raised her brows. “Doesn’t scream ‘friendly.’”

I stepped forward and knocked once.

Then twice.

Then once again.

Just as he’d told me.

A pause.

Then the door opened.

An elderly woman stood there. Wiry hair pinned back. Sharp eyes. A revolver in her hand, pointed squarely at my chest.

“You’re late,” she said.

I blinked. “You know who we are?”

“Of course I do,” she said. “Get inside before they spot you.”

The inside of the cabin was a fortress in disguise. Beneath the cozy furniture and bookshelves, there were concealed weapons, communications gear, and multiple escape hatches. The woman moved with precision, disarming herself as she gestured for us to sit.

“You have a name?” I asked.

“Not one I give strangers,” she said flatly. “But you can call me Mara.”

014 sat beside me, eyes scanning the room. “How do you know him—the man who sent us?”

Mara gave her a measured look. “We’ve been fighting this war longer than you’ve been breathing. He’s a friend. Was. If he sent you here, he knew what he was doing.”

She handed us water and a piece of paper. “This is what he was working on. Before he got caught.”

It was a floor plan. Not of the data center we’d just left—but of a compound. One much bigger.

A red X marked the northern wall. Another circled the communications hub inside.

“This is where they’ve moved the files,” Mara said. “After what you two did, they panicked. Whatever secrets they’re trying to hide? They’ll be in that compound by sunrise.”

“And you want us to go in?” I asked.

She smiled. “I want you to decide what kind of story this ends up being. A tragedy? Or the start of something new.”

We stayed the night in shifts, sleeping in the safest room while Mara monitored the perimeter.

My dreams were splintered. Pieces of memories—real ones, I think—flickered through the dark. My voice on a podium. 014 laughing in a hallway. Ryan, somewhere, calling my name.

And the sound of fire.

Always fire.

By dawn, the plan was clear.

We would infiltrate the compound. Get the files. Expose the truth.

Not just for me—for Estela. For Prima. For every woman they silenced. Every name they erased. Every identity they stole.

014 stood beside me in the doorway of the cabin, her face set with quiet determination.

“You ready?” I asked.

She nodded. “Let’s burn it down."