An Ugly Kind of Mercy

Jessica’s breath hitched in her throat. The tunnel was dark, damp, and silent—except for the voice that sent a chill down her spine.

"You already know who I am, Miss Carter."

The man in the suit stood at the end of the passage, half-lit by the flickering glow of an old maintenance light. He wasn’t armed—not visibly—but Jessica knew better than to think that made him any less dangerous.

Leanna raised her pistol. "Back off."

The man exhaled, amused. "If I wanted you dead, you wouldn’t have made it this far."

Jessica swallowed, stepping forward. "Who are you?"

The man took a slow step closer. "I was there, Jessica. Before Belize. Before you even knew what you were. I’ve watched you run, fight, survive. But you still don’t see the full picture, do you?"

Elias tensed beside her. "What the hell is he talking about?"

Jessica shook her head, her mind racing. "That’s a lie. I don’t know you."

A smirk. "That’s the thing about memory, isn’t it? So fragile. So… moldable."

The words sent an icy wave of nausea through her. Jessica clenched her fists, ignoring the unease rising in her gut.

Leanna spat, low and furious, “What the hell do you want?”

"Nothing. I’m just the man who keeps balance."

The man regarded them carefully, then reached into his coat. Olivia took a sharp step back, but he simply pulled out a small envelope, flicking it onto the ground between them.

"An exit, if you’re smart enough to take it," he said. "Walk away, go back to your quiet little detective life, and live. Or you keep digging. And you find out what the world looks like without the lies you need to sleep at night."

Jessica didn’t move.

Leanna’s grip on her gun tightened. "And if we don’t take either option?"

The man sighed, almost disappointed. "Then I clean up the mess. And trust me, Miss Carter, I don’t enjoy killing talent."

The quiet tread of boots reached them next. Calm. No hurry. More of them were coming. Jessica didn’t hesitate. She grabbed the envelope, shoved it into her jacket, and turned to the others, "Move. Now."

They ran.

---

By the time they reached their safe house on the outskirts of Buenos Aires, Jessica’s hands were still shaking.

She sat at the old wooden table, staring at the unopened envelope. The others were quiet, exhausted from the chase. Elias stood by the window, keeping watch. Olivia was poring over her laptop, searching for any trace of the man in the suit. Leanna, arms crossed, watched Jessica carefully.

"You going to open it?" Leanna finally asked.

Jessica took a breath and tore it open. Inside was a single sheet of paper.

A name. A date. And a location. Leanna frowned, reading over her shoulder. "That date… that’s before Belize. Before you disappeared."

Jessica’s stomach twisted. Whatever this was, it had started long before she ever thought it had.

Elias turned from the window. "So what now?"

Jessica folded the paper once, slow, tight like that might keep the past from bleeding out. "Now we find out how much worse it really is."