Chapter 22: The Choice

The woman in black stepped forward.

"Give me the journal."

I held it tighter.

"No."

Her smile disappeared.

"You really are your father's daughter."

"How do you know my father?"

She laughed softly.

"Because I was there the night he died."

My breath caught.

"You killed him?"

"No."

She tilted her head.

"Your father trusted someone he shouldn't have."

My eyes moved towards my mother.

She looked away.

The room seemed to spin.

"Who?"

The woman glanced at Samuel.

Then at Victor.

Finally, she looked at my mother.

"Ask her."

"Mum?"

My mother began to cry.

"I didn't kill your father."

"Then what did you do?"

She couldn't answer.

The woman in black stepped closer.

"She made a deal."

My mother's voice broke.

"I had no choice."

"You always have a choice," the woman replied.

"Sometimes the choice is between losing one person and losing everyone."

I stared at my mother.

"What did you give them?"

She looked directly into my eyes.

"You."

Silence.

"What?"

"When your father discovered Project Echo, they wanted the evidence. Your father refused. So they threatened to take you."

She wiped her tears.

"I gave them information about the project so they would leave you alone."

"You betrayed Dad."

"I was trying to save you!"

"You let them kill him!"

My mother's knees gave way.

"I didn't know they would."

The woman in black smiled.

"And that's the problem with making deals with people like us."

Samuel raised his gun.

"Enough."

Several weapons immediately appeared from the darkness.

"Put it down," the woman ordered.

Samuel slowly lowered his gun.

Daniel moved closer to me.

The woman pointed at the journal.

"Now."

I looked down at it.

Then at my mother.

Then at Daniel.

My brother's voice echoed in my head.

Trust actions, not words.

I suddenly understood.

The journal wasn't the real evidence.

My father had known they would come for it.

He had hidden something else.

Something they didn't know about.

I smiled.

The woman frowned.

"What are you smiling at?"

"Because you made one mistake."

"What mistake?"

"You assumed I was carrying the evidence."

I threw the journal across the room.

Everyone turned.

The woman shouted.

"Get it!"

Two men rushed towards it.

I grabbed Daniel's hand.

"Run!"

We sprinted towards the emergency exit.

Samuel fired twice into the ceiling.

The lights flickered.

Everyone screamed.

Daniel shoved the door open.

We ran into the darkness.

Behind us, the woman shouted:

"GET THEM!"

We didn't stop.

But as we reached the road, Daniel suddenly pulled me into an alley.

"What are you doing?"

He pointed ahead.

A black car was waiting.

The driver's door opened.

A familiar figure stepped out.

My heart stopped.

It was my brother.

He looked at me.

And smiled.

"Hello, Maya."

I couldn't breathe.

After three years...

He was finally standing in front of me.