Chapter 4 - The Man at the Console
Henderson had spent six months pretending to be nervous around authority.
He dropped coffee when officers entered.
Asked too many questions about basic security.
Apologized whenever someone noticed him near a restricted terminal.
It was an excellent performance.
Marcus had begun suspecting him two weeks earlier when maintenance records showed his credentials appearing in the system during hours he claimed to be off-site. Then several convoy schedules were accessed moments before encrypted payments moved through accounts connected to overseas shell organizations.
But suspicion was not evidence.
So Marcus watched.
In the bunker, she finally saw his hands perform the betrayal.
He entered a hard override.
The thermal feed inverted.
The wind values flipped.
Every sniper calculation became a weapon against the convoy it was meant to protect.
Marcus tried to move past Garrett.
The radio shrieked.
“They breached the lead transport!” a convoy officer shouted. “They have Sarah! They’re moving her toward the eastern ridge!”
Garrett released Marcus and turned toward his rifle.
Behind him, Henderson reached beneath his jacket.
Marcus saw the weapon before anyone else did.
He was not aiming at her.
He was aiming at Garrett’s back.
She crossed the distance between them before Henderson completed the motion.
They crashed into the damaged terminal. The weapon slid across the floor beneath a steel cabinet. Marcus pinned his wrist while alarms screamed around them.
Garrett turned and saw only a contractor on top of an injured colleague.
He did not see the weapon disappear into the shadows.
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He tackled Marcus off Henderson.
Then drove the rifle across her chest.
