Page 115 of Hunt Me

Federal marshals flood through the doorway, weapons drawn. Kendall shouts orders while Walsh dives behind the table. General Hawkins moves with military precision, securing Jenkins’ dropped pistol.

“Freeze! Everyone hands where we can see them!”

Erik raises both hands slowly, his own weapon already holstered. Dmitri mirrors the gesture. Nikolai remains perfectly still, calculating our next move with that razor-sharp mind.

Iris stands.

“Enough.”

Her voice cuts through the chaos like a blade. Every weapon in the room shifts toward her, but she doesn’t flinch.

“Listen to yourselves.” She sweeps her gaze across the marshals, the directors, the general. “This is what your system has created. Operatives are bleeding out because they’reafraid of being sacrificed. Secret programs executing American citizens. And you wonder why people like me dig for truth?”

“Miss Mitchell, sit down—” Walsh starts.

“No.” She steps around the table, hands visible but posture defiant. “You’re going to listen. All of you.”

Jenkins groans from the floor, blood pooling beneath him. The marshals hold position, uncertain.

“Project Nightshade murdered my parents because they discovered arms trafficking through government channels.” Iris’s voice never wavers. “Sentinel Operations has been running illegal black sites, conducting unauthorized assassinations, and eliminating witnesses foryears. And you—” She points at Kendall. “You knew. Youallknew.”

“We have national security?—”

“Your children don’t care about national security when they ask where Daddy is.” Iris shifts her attention to General Hawkins. “Neither do your grandchildren when you miss their birthdays because you’re covering up another Sentinel operation gone wrong.”

The general’s jaw tightens.

“We have proof of everything,” Iris continues. “Financial records. Communications. Kill orders with your signatures. And those files are currently queued for release to every major news outlet in the world unless we walk out of here intact.”

“That’s extortion,” Walsh says weakly.

“That’s survival.” I rise, positioning myself beside Iris. “Which brings us back to terms. Real ones this time.”

Kendall exchanges glances with Walsh and Hawkins. The marshals lower their weapons fractionally.

“What do you want?” Kendall’s voice is steel.

“Investigation,” Nikolai says. “Independent review of Sentinel Operations. Full transparency regarding Project Nightshade.”

“And in exchange?”

“Ceasefire,” I answer. “We stop digging. You stop hunting.”

The room holds its breath.

“Temporary truce,” Kendall says finally. “Pending investigation results.”

“Forty-eight hours,” Kendall says. “You have forty-eight hours to deliver the complete file structure. In exchange, we suspend all operations against you pending review.”

“Seventy-two,” Nikolai counters. “And we deliver in segments. First proof of good faith from your end.”

Kendall’s knuckles whiten against the table edge. “This isn’t a negotiation.”

“Everything is a negotiation, Director.” Nikolai’s smile could cut glass. “You want the files intact. We want assurances you won’t bury us the moment we hand them over.”

Walsh leans toward Kendall, whispering urgently. The director’s expression darkens, but he nods once.

“Sixty hours. First segment delivered in twelve. We release your vehicles from impound and clear your exit from this building.”