Chapter 9 - The Fire That Exposed Everyone
The smoke burned my eyes.
Every step hurt.
Someone shouted behind me.
"Claire, stop!"
I ignored them.
The archive room was almost impossible to reach.
The door was hot.
I covered my hand with my jacket and pushed.
Inside, papers were everywhere.
Burning.
Disappearing.
Years of secrets turning into ash.
Then I saw it.
The old black box.
My father's box.
I reached for it.
A hand grabbed my shoulder.
I screamed.
I turned.
Daniel.
"What are you doing here?"
His face was covered in smoke.
"Saving you."
I laughed bitterly.
"You're late."
The words hurt him.
But he didn't argue.
Because he knew.
He grabbed the box.
"Move."
Together, we escaped.
Outside, firefighters rushed in.
Everyone watched.
Daniel and I standing side by side.
For a second, it looked normal.
Then I remembered.
Nothing was normal anymore.
---
The box survived.
But something else was inside.
A hidden recorder.
My father's final message.
We played it that night.
His voice filled the room.
"Claire, if you are hearing this..."
I covered my mouth.
My father's voice.
After three years.
"If they have reached you, then I failed."
A pause.
"Daniel is involved."
I looked at him.
He closed his eyes.
The recording continued.
"But he is not the person controlling everything."
The room went silent.
Then my father's final words came.
"The person closest to you is the one you should fear."
I slowly turned.
Toward Maya.
She was standing near the door.
Crying.
May you like
Because she had heard it too.
---
