“This is everything. Copies of all the evidence. Financial records, emails, proof of the forgeries, sales receipts. Everything Jonas and I compiled. Everything needed to take them down.”
The room stares at those tiny drives. So small they could fit in a pocket, but they could destroy empires. Send a US Senator to prison. Expose possibly hundreds of millions of dollars in fraud.
People have already killed for this.
Will kill again.
Rogan stands and moves around the table. He places a gentle hand on Anna’s shoulder. “You have nothing to apologize for, female. You’re under our protection now. You and everyone you care about.” He looks around the room, at the screen. “Agreed?”
Unanimous nods from everyone.
Pride swells in my chest.
Kelt leans forward. “First question: how sophisticated was the surveillance?”
“Very professional,” I respond. “High-quality photos. Long-range lenses. They must have been watching for weeks.”
“Do they know you’re in Maine?” he asks Anna.
“I don’t think so. I destroyed my phone before I boarded the plane. Paid cash for everything on my way to the bus.”
Kelt nods. “Good. That buys us time.”
From the screen, Jonus speaks up. “We still can’t go to the FBI. Too risky with Vance’s connections, but we can go to the press. Multiple major outlets simultaneously. New York Times, Washington Post, Guardian, Reuters. All at once with a coordinated release that will make it too big to suppress.”
“I know a lawyer,” Dane adds. “Whistleblower specialist. She’s defended journalists, helped expose corruption before.This human can coordinate the release and protect Anna legally. Make sure everything is airtight.”
“We need to prepare for retaliation,” Aldar says, always tactical. “When this goes public, they’ll be desperate. Anna needs to be completely untraceable until arrests are made.”
“She’s safe here,” Kelt responds. “The commune is isolated, protected. But we’ll increase security measures. Double patrols, monitoring all access points. No one in or out without clearance.”
Rogan looks at Dane. “How long to set this up properly?”
“Two to three weeks minimum.”
Anna looks surprised. “That fast?”
“We move quickly when family is threatened,” Rogan says simply.
Dane outlines the timeline. Week one: contact the lawyer and research journalists. Week two: coordinate strategy and set up secure file transfers. Week three: final preparation and simultaneous release. After that, we monitor coverage and prepare for Anna to potentially testify.
Assignments are given. From Truckee: Jonus contacts the lawyer, Dane researches journalists, Aldar works on evaluating the evidence you provided and secure uploads, Garlen maintains security for Ellie and Zoe. In Maine: Kelt increases commune security, Urdan doubles patrols, Rothgar provides backup measures, and I keep Anna safe.
“Check-in meeting in one week via video call,” Rogan summarizes. “Everyone reports progress. Any problems, we address immediately. Everyone clear?”
Unanimous agreement.
Rogan looks at Anna. “While we handle logistics, you rest. Recover. Get to know the commune, meet the other Brides. Let us worry about the details. Your job is to stay safe and prepare yourself mentally. We’ll handle everything else.”
Tears slide down Anna’s face again, but these are relief tears. “Thank you. All of you. I don’t know how to repay?—”
“You’re Keric’s possible Bride,” Rogan interrupts gently. “That makes you family already. We protect family. Always.”
“Are you sure…” she asks hesitantly “are you sure the Senator and the others won’t be able to find me here?”
I squeeze her hand under the table. “We can never be one hundred percent certain, but it will be extremely difficult,” I respond. “You see how remote we are and the protection around the perimeter. This commune has federal protection status. Satellite companies are required by law to obscure our location, and the forest cover does the rest. You can’t find us on Google Maps, and trespassing carries federal charges. We’re as off-grid as you can get in modern America.”
From the screen, Garlen speaks. “Anna, you did the right thing, going with Keric to the commune and you did the right thing when you ran three years ago. You kept yourself alive, kept the evidence safe. Now let us help you finish this.”
