Raelyn has been blowing up her phone for days, desperate for updates, desperate to see her. Our family is waiting for us back home. They’ve been waiting since the moment Ellie disappeared.
For the first time in weeks, I feel something I almost forgot existed.
Peace.
Ellie leans back against the seat, her hair falling loosely over her shoulders as she types. She looks calmer than she did a few days ago. Not completely healed—something like that takes time—but steadier. Grounded.
That’s why we stayed.
We could have flown home days ago, but Ellie wasn’t ready. Her mind needed time to settle after everything Katerina put her through. I wasn’t about to rush that.
Now things are different.
Her public statement worked better than any of us imagined. The open-source humanitarian release of ARGO shifted the narrative overnight. Governments, research institutions, and medical organizations are praising her work.
Little by little, her reputation is being repaired.
Once Samantha’s confession is fully extracted and made official, Ellie will be completely cleared.
But for now…this moment is enough.
The car is quiet except for the soft hum of the engine.
Then Timofey speaks.
“Mike.”
He turns slightly in his seat, his eyes meeting mine in the rearview mirror.
“What?” I ask.
His gaze flicks past me.
It lands on Ellie.
Then he says quietly, “Later.”
I immediately shake my head.
No.
Not anymore.
He’s not hiding things from her. Not after everything we’ve been through. Not after what she survived. Not after she proved she can stand in the middle of a war zone and still outthink everyone in the room.
She’s earned the truth.
“You can say it,” I tell him.
Ellie looks up from her phone, her eyes narrowing slightly as she studies both of us.
Timofey sighs.
He reaches into his jacket, pulling out his phone, glancing at the message on the screen before speaking.
“I just received information from one of my dark web sources,” he says slowly. “There’s new intelligence chatter.”
A cold weight settles in my chest.
