Chapter 4
Part 5 — The Traitor
Nobody spoke.
Daniel's last words echoed in everyone's mind.
"It's in there."
The silence was broken only by the sound of rain hitting the enormous glass walls of the stand.
Ethan remained motionless.
His eyes slowly scanned each face.
The billionaire.
The manager.
The five experts.
The security guards.
The customers.
Anyone could have been involved.
Or perhaps...
More than one.
At that moment, the hypercar emitted a short signal.
A new message appeared on the screen.
MAXIMUM LEVEL SECURITY PROTOCOL ACTIVATED.
All the doors were blocked.
The lights in the building dimmed.
The system automatically switched to being powered by the prototype's internal battery.
One of the experts looked at the ceiling.
The car took control of the power grid...
Another replied, incredulous:
That's impossible.
Ethan shook his head.
No. My father prepared this in case someone tried to erase the evidence.
The billionaire was breathing faster and faster.
Turn that system off!
It no longer depends on me.
Suddenly, all the screens in the booth lit up at the same time.
A countdown appeared.
09:59
09:58
09:57
The manager frowned.
What does this count mean?
Before Ethan could reply, a new message appeared.
"Identity verification begins."
Right below:
"The traitor will be identified."
A murmur echoed through the hall.
Customers started to back away.
The security guards exchanged nervous glances.
One of them discreetly approached the emergency exit.
The door didn't open.
A second message appeared on the screen.
"All exits will remain blocked until the analysis is complete."
The billionaire slammed his fist on a table.
This is illegal!
No one answered him.
Meanwhile, Ethan discreetly opened the small black box once more.
There was still one compartment that remained closed.
Too small.
Almost invisible.
The golden key had a second end.
He turned it slowly.
A click was heard.
The compartment opened.
Inside there was only an envelope.
The front read:
"Only open it when you no longer know who to trust."
Ethan took a deep breath.
He opened it.
Inside, he found a handwritten letter.
He immediately recognized his father's handwriting.
He began to read silently.
As he moved forward, his face changed.
Confusion.
Surprise.
After...
Shock.
The manager approached.
Ethan...
The boy slowly raised his eyes.
My father wrote down the names of all the people he trusted.
— And who are they?
Ethan swallowed hard.
There are only three names.
Daniel Carter.
Maya Carter.
...
The third name was torn.
Exactly where it should appear.
Before anyone could react, a metallic crack was heard.
One of the experts had dropped his mobile phone on the floor.
Ethan stared at the broken screen.
For a fraction of a second he saw something strange.
A message had just arrived.
"Leave immediately. The plan failed."
The sender had no name.
Just one letter.
R
The specialist quickly grabbed the mobile phone.
Too late.
Everyone had seen it.
The billionaire pointed at him.
So it was you!
- No!
Explain this message!
The man began to tremble.
— I... I don't know who R is.
The car's system interrupted the discussion.
A warning appeared.
Identity partially confirmed.
Then a hidden file appeared.
Title:
REGISTRATION — AGENT R
Ethan opened it.
A blurry photograph appeared.
A man was leaving Daniel's workshop on the night of the disappearance.
His face was covered.
But there was one detail that was impossible to ignore.
On my left wrist...
A silver watch.
Everyone turned their gaze back to the billionaire.
He no longer wore a watch.
The pulse was empty.
The manager frowned.
Where is the clock?
The billionaire hesitated for a moment.
I took it off.
- When?
He didn't answer.
At that moment, one of the security guards took two steps back.
Then he turned around.
And he started running.
"Stop him!" shouted the manager.
But before anyone could reach him...
The man discreetly took a small remote control out of his pocket.
He pressed a button.
Outside.
In the parking lot of the stand.
A white van exploded.
The shockwave made all the windows shake.
The alarms went off.
Smoke completely covered the entrance.
A new message immediately appeared on the hypercar's dashboard.
Satellite connection re-established.
The map reappeared.
The spot where Daniel was hiding began to move.
Very quickly.
As if someone were carrying it.
At the same time, a video stream appeared.
For only three seconds.
Daniel looked directly at the camera.
Maya was standing next to him.
But behind the two of them...
There was another man.
The face remained in shadow.
When he took a step forward, the light revealed only half of his face.
The manager let out a whisper:
It can't be...
Ethan looked at him.
Do you know him?
The manager turned pale.
I thought he was dead.
The image disappeared before the unknown was fully revealed.
Immediately below, a single sentence appeared:
"He never worked for the investors."
"The investors worked for him."
The timer continued to tick down.
02:41
02:40
Ethan gripped the steering wheel again.
He was beginning to realize that his father's disappearance had never been just a corporate crime.
It was part of something much bigger.
May you like
And the truth was about to change everything.
Continued in Part 6…
