She exhales slowly.
“The list isn’t just names,” she says.
“I figured.”
“It’s connections,” she continues. “Funding. Routes. Safe locations. People embedded in places they shouldn’t be.”
My jaw tightens.
Yeah.
That’s bigger than a hit squad.
That’s infrastructure.
That’s power.
“That kind of list doesn’t just get lost,” I say.
“No,” she replies. “It gets buried.”
“Or destroyed.”
“Or protected,” she adds.
Her eyes meet mine again.
Meaning clear.
That’s what she’s doing.
Protecting it.
At all costs.
“Why you?” I ask.
“Because I’m the only one who got it out,” she says.
Simple.
Not simple.
Not even close.
“And now they want it back,” I say.
“They want it erased,” she corrects. “Along with me.”
Silence settles between us again.
Heavier this time.
More real.
“You should’ve handed it off,” I say.
“I tried.”
