Russell smiled.
“Thomas.”
Margaret looked toward the smoke-filled corridor.
“He switched the servers to emergency power.”
The transfer raced.
90%.
94%.
97%.
99%.
Then—
**TRANSFER COMPLETE.**
A green message appeared.
ARCHIVE RECEIVED BY FEDERAL SECURE NETWORK.
Nobody spoke.
Russell stared at the screen.
Thirty years of secrets had left his hands forever.
Then the ceiling shook.
Fire alarms screamed.
We ran.
—
# PART 6 — **THE NIGHT EVERYTHING BURNED**
The farmhouse was on fire.
Smoke poured through the hallway.
Daniel carried Russell’s weight on one side while I held him on the other.
Claire and Margaret followed.
Outside, gunfire cracked.
We dropped behind an overturned table.
Rebecca’s men were somewhere near the front porch.
Then another shot came from outside.
One of them shouted.
Police sirens screamed beyond the woods.
Margaret looked at me.
“Through the kitchen!”
