"He's building a comprehensive picture of their Montana operations." I trace the pattern of Reeve's movements overlaid on Committee communication nodes. "Verifying each asset'ssecurity, reporting back to Webb, coordinating whatever response they're planning."
"The question is what they're planning." Kane's voice is grim. "Are they just reinforcing security on compromised assets? Or are they using the audit to identify threats in this region?"
"Both, probably." Sarah runs scenarios, testing each possibility. "Reeve eliminates compromised assets while gathering intelligence about who's investigating them. He's not just fixing problems, he's hunting for whoever's causing them."
"Which means he could be getting close to identifying Echo Ridge." I don't like where this logic leads. "He's analyzing patterns of Committee failures in Montana, our operations create a signature. Warehouse breaches, intelligence leaks, the timing of our interventions."
"He'd need access to comprehensive operational data to identify those patterns." Kane brings up Echo Ridge's recent activities. "We've been careful about leaving footprints. Each operation looks like isolated incidents, not coordinated intelligence work."
"Unless someone connects them." Sarah highlights our activity timeline. "The warehouse breach in Kalispell, followed by surveillance on Masters, followed by Committee counter-surveillance activation. If Reeve has access to regional operations data, he will see the pattern."
The possibility sits uncomfortable in the room. We've been hunting the leak in the Committee's network while Reeve has been hunting whoever's exploiting that leak. Two investigations are running parallel, potentially on a collision course.
"We need to know what Reeve knows." I examine his profile, studying his operational history. "If he's narrowing his search, we need to stay ahead of him."
Any intelligence about Reeve will go straight to Delaney as well. To be added to the evidence chain against Webbthat will survive legal scrutiny—assuming the day comes when the Committee faces actual justice instead of just tactical elimination.
"Tommy's working on deeper Committee decryption." Kane marks priority intercepts. "If we can break their operational communications, we'll know what Reeve is reporting back to Webb."
"In the meantime, we continue monitoring Davis's network." Sarah updates the watch list. "Williams and Hartley are flagged for immediate alert once Reeve makes contact. Anyone else in Davis's network gets passive surveillance."
"And we prepare contingencies." Kane's face is unreadable. "If Reeve gets too close, if he starts narrowing his search toward our area of operations, we'll need to take direct action."
It's direct action—Kane's clean term for what we both know he means. If the Committee gets within striking distance of Echo Base, we eliminate the threat.
"I'll coordinate with Dylan and Stryker." I save the tactical assessment data. "Make sure we have rapid response protocols when Reeve becomes an immediate threat."
"Do it." Kane dismisses us with finality that suggests he's already running darker scenarios. "And stay sharp. Reeve is good at what he does."
We leave Kane's office with mission parameters that feel less defined than usual. Our orders: monitor, assess, prepare. Wait for Reeve to make a move that reveals his hand, hope we identify the threat before it materializes into active danger.
In the hallway, Sarah checks her phone. "I should get back to monitoring Davis's communications. If Reeve contacts anyone else in his network, I want to know immediately."
"I'll work with Dylan on contingency planning." The tactical side needs attention even though the intelligence picture staysunclear. "Make sure we have options when this escalates faster than expected."
She nods, then hesitates. "Micah? What I said before, about love and hate and everything being damaged? I meant it. But I also don't know what to do with it."
"Neither do I." It's an honest answer, because I'm as lost in this emotional territory as she is. "But maybe we don't have to figure it out tonight. Maybe we just keep working the investigation and let the rest sort itself out."
"Maybe." Uncertainty flickers across her face. "I just don't want to make things worse by trying to fix them too fast."
"Then we take it slow." I meet her eyes, holding the moment. "We work the investigation. We have conversations when they happen naturally. We don't force anything we're not ready for."
Her shoulders drop, some of the tension leaving her face. "Okay. Slow works."
She walks away toward the operations center, leaving me in the hallway with the weight of conversations and investigations and the careful rebuilding of something we both thought was permanently broken.
Back in my quarters, I strip off my gear and sit on the edge of my bunk. The conversation with Sarah replays on loop—her voice when she said she's afraid of feeling nothing. It's not that she hates me. It's not that she can't forgive me. It's that one day she'll look at me and feel absolutely nothing.
I'd rather have her anger forever than face that particular emptiness.
My phone buzzes. It's a text from Dylan about the contingency planning session. I send back confirmation, then stare at Sarah's name in my contacts. My thumb hovers over it.
Not tonight. Tomorrow we'll track Reeve. We'll monitor Davis's network and stay ahead of Webb's investigation. I'll make sure nothing threatens what we're rebuilding.
Tonight, I leave her message unanswered—four words she sent:We'll make it work.
15
