“Can Raven hear us?” Annalise asks, sitting on the coffee table to face Valentine. “Can she talk to us too?”
“I’m afraid not,” Valentine says. “Only one operating system at a time. She made the choice, girls. Not me.” She says it kindly, and I appreciate that she understands that although we had our differences with Raven in the past, we know better now. And we miss her.
I walk around to sit on the couch with Brynn, and Marcellajoins us. Sydney stays standing near the coffee table, interrogating Valentine.
“Why was Anton really here?” she asks. “Was it just to reset us?”
“Anton is a little scared for his future,” she says. “These corporation boys, they’re popping up dead left and right. I don’t know who’s behind it, but Anton felt it was Mr. Petrov. He hoped to hand you over as a bribe to save his own life.”
“How did you know his device wouldn’t work on our kill switches?” Sydney asks. “Was it real?”
“Unfortunately, it was real. But I would never have let him use it,” Valentine adds emphatically. “When Annalise gave me the address to the cabin, I mapped it and was relieved when it wasn’t in signal range. That’s when I called Anton and told him I was coming to see you. He said he’d join me. On my way to meet him, I made a quick stop at the hardware store to get some essentials. The syringe, I took from his bathroom medicine cabinet.” Her face softens. “Although I knew you’d be safe from Anton physically, I’m sorry that you had to endure more of his emotional abuse. He’s such a disappointment.” Valentine looks down at him. “You’re such a disappointment,” she repeats louder, and he moans a response that none of us can understand.
“Now what?” Sydney asks, looking around at us.
“That’s where I have some good news,” Valentine says. “Since Raven woke me up, Anton has given me an earful about the investors and the corporation. You won’t believe what he told me about Senator Ross and the other members of his party. Anton is a chatty guy, that’s for sure. Turns out, Mr. Petrov embezzled nearlythirty million dollars from Innovations Corporation, money that was meant to pay taxes. Anton also told me that Petrov not only killed his own ex-wife, but that he’s also killed several former employees. Anton had names and dates. And don’t even get me started on that Wallach news network.”
“Anton told you all of this?” I ask.
“Oh, yes,” she replies. “He trusted me implicitly. After all, he installed me. He was surprised but so grateful that I was awake and obedient, just the way he’d planned. Unfortunately for him, I recorded his rantings—the money laundering, tax evasion, murder. They’ve all broken so many laws, the investigators won’t know where to start.”
“But he didn’t admit to killing the investors?” I ask. “Or making the town up and leave?”
“No,” Valentine says. “I dare say he had nothing to do with it at all.”
The list of suspects is dwindling down. I don’t want to pin this on Leandra, but she’s looking guiltier by the second.
“Anton’s going to jail?” Marcella asks, checking with Valentine.
“I’m sure he hopes so,” Valentine says. “Anton has crossed so many people, there’s no one even left to cover his crimes. He’s going to jail, and he’s not going alone.”
I look down at Anton lying on the floor. His breathing is still fast, but he’s following our conversation. His sweaty skin has turned pale. He knows it’s over.
“Who are you going to give the tape to?” I ask. “Leandra warned us that—”
“Raven and I covered that,” she says. “There are copies generating at a rapid pace, and by midnight, they’ll be uploaded everywhere. Supporting documents that Raven gathered from Winston’s files and Anton’s house will also upload. It’s going to be a massive news day tomorrow.”
Valentine looks down at Anton again, nudging him with the tip of her shoe.
“She remembered, you know,” Valentine tells him. “After she broke into her programming, Raven could remember everything you did, every lie, every adjustment. And now she’ll make sure you never hurt anyone again.”
I can’t help it—my eyes brim with tears and spill over. I want to talk to Raven, thank her for protecting us, for sending us Valentine. But she left without saying goodbye. She might never come back.
“Well,” Valentine says, getting to her feet, “I should probably get him loaded into the car.”
“Where are you going to take him?” Sydney asks.
“Raven booked a room in a seedy hotel not far from the Denver police station. Said there’s a woman there we can trust,” Valentine states. “I’m going to bring Anton there, duct-tape him to the bed, and when the information goes live, I’ll call in an anonymous tip of where they can find Mr. Anton Stuart. The corporation and all of its cohorts will be toast.”
It can’t be true. The corporation is… over? It can’t be that simple, can it? Although, getting here hasn’t been simple at all.A lot of people have died. Some of us have died. So no, “simple” isn’t the right word.
Valentine stands up, and Brynn jumps to her feet too. “Wait,” she says. “What about our kill switches?” she asks. “Did Raven—?”
Valentine holds up her hand to stop her, smiling softly. “Raven figured out how to protect our systems. At least, she thinks she did. She has an email scheduled for tonight with instructions, but they’re not final. She didn’t have time to finish. But, in her words: ‘We’ll figure it out ourselves,’?” Valentine repeats, sounding very much like Raven. “We’re the ones with the computer brains, remember? Who better to understand the system than us?”
At the time, Raven couldn’t help Claire, but we could be different. We’re not damaged, not in the way Claire was. Besides, Raven was right—who better than us?
Valentine takes a deep breath and looks around the cabin. Then she smiles at us. “I’m glad I got to see you girls again,” she says. “I’m sorry that it cost so much to get us here, but I’m grateful that you’re okay.”
