Chapter 4 - The Man on the Bridge
Nobody fired.
That was the first miracle.
The second was that Jade remained seated.
Everything in her body looked ready to move.
Her shoulders.
Her hands.
Her eyes.
But she didn't rush toward the bridge.
Hale ordered everyone into covered positions.
The man stood alone on the broken span, white flag hanging loosely from one hand.
Through binoculars, he looked about sixty.
Gray hair.
No visible weapon.
A dark field jacket.
Black bird patch.
Jade's old symbol.
Hale's voice came through the radio.
"Identify yourself."
The man smiled.
"You know me."
Hale did.
I could tell from the silence.
Voss did too.
He said one word.
"Calder."
Jade turned.
"Who?"
Hale answered reluctantly.
"Brigadier General Thomas Calder."
Collins frowned.
"Retired?"
Voss laughed without humor.
"Officially."
Calder's voice came over the radio.
"Bring Sparrow forward."
Hale said, "No."
"Then the engineers die."
Jade opened the armored vehicle door.
Mercer grabbed the wheelchair.
"Wait."
She looked at him.
"Four people are trapped."
"This could be a trap."
"It is a trap."
"That isn't comforting."
Jade almost smiled.
"Didn't mean it to be."
Mercer rolled her onto the road.
I followed.
So did Collins.
Hale saw us.
"Monroe, stop."
She didn't.
Hale walked back from the lead vehicle.
"You are not approaching him."
Jade looked toward the bridge.
"Then ask him the question."
"What question?"
She showed him the message.
ASK HALE WHO ORDERED NUMBER SEVEN.
Hale stared.
His expression changed.
Jade saw it.
"You know."
"No."
"General."
He looked away.
"You know what number seven means."
Voss joined us.
"Tell her."
Hale's face hardened.
Voss stepped closer.
"Marcus."
Jade's voice dropped.
"Who was number seven?"
Hale looked at her.
"Your brother."
Everything stopped.
Jade whispered, "What?"
Rebecca covered her mouth.
She knew.
Of course she knew.
Jade turned toward her.
"My brother?"
Rebecca cried.
"I'm sorry."
Jade's face emptied.
"I don't have a brother."
"You did."
The words barely came out.
"His name was Nathan."
Jade looked at Hale.
"You knew?"
"Yes."
"You knew I had a brother on Red Hollow?"
"He wasn't supposed to be there."
"Then why was he?"
Hale swallowed.
"Because Calder ordered him onto the team."
The man on the bridge watched us.
Even from fifty yards away, he seemed to enjoy the chaos.
Jade asked, "Why didn't anyone tell me?"
Hale said, "Nathan was intelligence. Different name. Different file. You weren't supposed to know."
"But he knew me?"
"Yes."
Her breathing changed.
Memories were moving behind her eyes.
"Number Seven."
Hale nodded.
Jade stared into nothing.
"He gave me water."
Rebecca whispered, "Jade."
"He carried me after the first blast."
Hale closed his eyes.
"He knew."
She looked at him.
"He knew I was his sister."
"Yes."
"And I watched him die without knowing who he was."
Nobody answered.
Calder's radio voice cut through.
"Touching reunion."
Jade lifted the radio.
"Why?"
Calder responded immediately.
"Come closer."
"No."
"Then you don't deserve the answer."
Jade raised the rifle.
Hale put a hand over the barrel.
"Don't."
She looked at him.
"Move."
"Not like this."
"Move."
"Jade."
Her eyes filled with tears, but her voice stayed calm.
"He knew my name. My brother knew my name, and I buried him as Number Seven."
Hale didn't move.
"Then honor him by not giving Calder what he wants."
Jade stared at him.
Slowly, she lowered the rifle.
Voss said, "We need the engineers."
Reeves had been studying the ravine.
"There."
He pointed.
Through the broken section of bridge, we saw movement below.
A yellow jacket.
One engineer.
Alive.
Another figure beside him.
The group was inside a maintenance recess built into the concrete wall.
Voss said, "Node access."
Jade nodded.
"Calder is standing above it."
Hale keyed the radio.
"What do you want?"
Calder answered.
"The third key."
Voss's face changed.
Hale looked at him.
"You have it."
Voss said nothing.
Jade stared.
"You said the node held one of three."
"Yes."
"Where are the others?"
Voss reached into his coat.
He pulled out the small black drive.
"One."
Then he looked at Jade's wrist.
"Two."
Jade's eyes narrowed.
"My number?"
"Not the number."
"The scar."
Voss nodded.
"The scar pattern is biometric encoding."
Mercer stared.
"You burned a key into her body?"
Voss's voice was quiet.
"I didn't."
"Who did?"
Calder answered over the radio.
"I did."
Jade looked toward him.
Calder continued.
"Eight years ago, Sparrow carried something more valuable than she ever knew."
Hale shouted into the radio.
"You used her."
"I saved the archive."
"You sacrificed the team."
"I preserved the evidence."
"Seven people died."
"Necessary loss."
Jade's face became frighteningly still.
"What is the third key?" she asked.
Calder laughed.
"Your brother."
She froze.
"Dead men don't carry keys."
"This one did."
Hale looked at Voss.
Voss looked equally shocked.
Calder said, "Nathan hid the third key before he died."
"Where?"
"Inside Sparrow's rescue kit."
Jade's breathing stopped.
Rebecca whispered, "No."
Everyone looked at her.
Jade turned.
"What?"
Rebecca shook her head.
"No."
"What did you do?"
"I found something."
Hale stepped toward her.
"When?"
"The night Jade was brought in."
"What?"
"A metal capsule."
Voss closed his eyes.
"You had it."
Rebecca cried harder.
"I didn't know what it was."
"Where is it?"
Rebecca looked at Jade.
"I hid it."
"Where?"
"With your things."
"Which things?"
"Your old field bag."
Jade's eyes widened.
"The one in my apartment?"
Rebecca nodded.
Calder laughed over the radio.
"Thank you, Rebecca."
Everyone looked at the radio.
Rebecca turned pale.
Voss whispered, "He needed confirmation."
Hale keyed the command channel.
"Security team, Jade Monroe's residence. Now."
Static.
No response.
Hale tried again.
Nothing.
Calder raised his hand.
On the ridge behind him, three figures appeared.
Rifles.
Reeves shouted, "Cover!"
We moved behind the vehicles.
Gunfire cracked.
Not at us.
At the bridge support.
Concrete shattered.
The engineers screamed below.
Calder disappeared behind the broken span.
Jade lifted her rifle and fired twice.
One ridge shooter dropped behind cover.
Mercer stared at her.
Jade didn't notice.
She fired again.
Controlled.
Precise.
The second shooter retreated.
Hale shouted, "We need those engineers out!"
Reeves moved left with Collins.
I followed.
Jade directed us.
"Drainage channel. East side. Stay below the guardrail."
It worked.
We reached the ravine edge without taking fire.
Mercer and two soldiers descended by rope.
Voss moved toward the maintenance entrance.
Hale grabbed him.
"Where are you going?"
"To secure the node."
Jade said, "I'll go."
"No."
"General—"
"No."
She pointed toward the opening.
"Calder knows the system. You don't."
Voss nodded.
"She does."
Hale looked at Jade's wheelchair.
She saw it.
"Say it."
He didn't.
"Say I can't."
Hale exhaled.
"You have cracked ribs."
"Not an answer."
"Fine."
Mercer returned from the ravine.
"First engineer coming up."
Jade looked at him.
"I need your legs."
Mercer smiled grimly.
"Finally, something I'm qualified for."
He lifted her carefully.
She wrapped one arm around his shoulder.
Rifle slung across her back.
Together they descended.
I followed.
The maintenance tunnel was narrow.
Wet concrete.
Old wiring.
At the far end, a steel door stood open.
Inside was a room filled with obsolete communication racks.
Most were dead.
One screen glowed.
Jade stared at it.
A black bird appeared.
Then text.
WELCOME, SPARROW.
Mercer whispered, "That's creepy."
Jade touched the terminal.
A prompt appeared.
KEY TWO REQUIRED.
She looked at her wrist.
Voss entered behind us.
"Scanner."
There was a narrow optical plate beside the monitor.
Jade placed her scar above it.
Red light moved across the skin.
The screen changed.
KEY TWO ACCEPTED.
Mercer swore.
Then another line appeared.
KEY THREE REQUIRED.
Jade said, "Rebecca's capsule."
Voss nodded.
"Calder is going for it."
Hale's voice came through our radio.
"Engineers secured. We withdraw."
Jade stared at the screen.
"Not yet."
"Monroe."
"We can lock the node."
Voss shook his head.
"Without key three, no."
"Can we destroy it?"
"Possibly."
"Then do it."
Voss began typing.
The monitor flickered.
Suddenly every rack in the room powered on.
Old speakers crackled.
A recording began.
A man's voice.
Young.
Tired.
"Jade, if you're hearing this, I didn't make it."
She froze.
Hale came through the doorway.
The voice continued.
"My name is Nathan Monroe."
Jade covered her mouth.
Her brother.
"My mission was to protect the archive."
Jade's eyes filled.
"And protect you."
Hale looked down.
Nathan's recording continued.
"Calder ordered Red Hollow because he needed the team erased."
Voss stared at the terminal.
Hale whispered, "God."
Nathan said, "But Calder wasn't working alone."
Everyone stopped breathing.
The recording crackled.
"I found the second name."
Then the power died.
Blackness.
Jade shouted, "No!"
Emergency lights flashed.
The screen returned for half a second.
One final line appeared.
SECOND NAME: GENERAL—
Then everything went dark again.
From behind us, Hale whispered, "There were only three generals who knew about Red Hollow."
May you like
A flashlight switched on at the tunnel entrance.
A familiar voice said, "And one of them is standing in this room."
