Chapter 9 - RAIDS AND REVELATIONS
The next three days were the longest of my life. I stayed away from the safe house, communicating only through one secure channel, terrified of leading anyone to Noah. I studied the names. Cross-referenced every entry. Memorized faces, addresses, routines.
The raids were set for midnight. Synchronized across six states. Federal teams poised. Warrants signed. Everything depended on the list being genuine.
At eleven forty-five, Marquez messaged: All teams in position. Stand by.
At eleven fifty, another message. Sent to me only. Not from Marquez.
*DO NOT TRUST THE JUDGE.*
My heart hammered. Which judge? There were three on the list. Before I could reply, the countdown ended.
The signal was given.
I watched screens in the command center as reports flooded in. Location after location secured. Suspects arrested. Documents seized. All going perfectly. Too perfectly.
Then the third team. The waterfront estate belonging to the Honorable Arthur Grady, the most powerful name on the Council list.
*Ambush. Heavy weapons. Officers down. They were waiting.*
My blood turned to ice. The warning had been real. And someone had tipped them off.
Marquez shouted orders. Reinforcements scrambled. I grabbed my coat.
“Adrian, no—”
“They knew you were coming! Someone inside this operation warned them!”
I drove fast toward the waterfront estate. Sirens blared ahead. Flames rose against the night sky. When I arrived, the battle was over. Bullet-ridden vehicles smoldered. Officers treating wounds. The house… empty. Grady and his entire household were gone.
Marquez found me standing on the terrace, staring at an open safe sitting in the study. Empty. Except for one single sheet of paper laid right on top.
*Thank you for the confirmation. We will rebuild. And we will be waiting. The war is just beginning, Adrian. And this time… there will be no warnings.*
Signed with a single raven feather drawn in ink.
The matriarch. She had known. She had fed us enough names to clear out the members she hated, while protecting her most powerful allies and slipping away herself.
I walked back out onto the terrace. Looked out at the dark water. The anonymous source had tried to warn me. And now they were silent again.
May you like
I pulled up the list on my phone. Scrolled to the bottom. One name remained unraided. One address never touched. A small cabin deep in the mountains. Not listed in any public record. Added to the emailed list in tiny handwriting.
The source had left it there. For me. Alone.
