Chapter 13
219words
An informant for an international human rights organization contacted them through a secure channel. He claimed to have damning evidence—a hard drive documenting government forces using chemical weapons against civilians. He wanted Liam and Lena to smuggle it out and make it public.
This was evidence that could change the war's course—and a death warrant that could send them to the gallows.
"We'll do it," Liam agreed without consulting Lena.
Lena didn't object. She knew this was their mission. This was why they'd come.
"To photograph the stories that must be seen." She remembered her father's words and the note Liam would leave her.
The trajectory of fate seemed written long before.
They received the hard drive—small, heavily wrapped, surprisingly heavy. The plan: disguise themselves as evacuating civilians, travel in an old pickup truck, and cross the border.
Everything should have gone smoothly.
But five kilometers from the border, a military jeep materialized from the dust cloud behind them, sticking to their tail like a shadow.
"We've been betrayed!" Liam yanked the wheel, sending their truck careening off-road across rugged terrain.
Bullets rained down, pinging off the truck's metal frame. Lena clutched the protective case to her chest, heart hammering against her ribs.
"Hold on!" Liam shouted, suddenly steering toward a steep embankment.
