CHAPTER 2: THE FILE THAT SHOULD NOT EXIST
CHAPTER 2: THE FILE THAT SHOULD NOT EXIST
Two weeks later, I was moved to a safe house outside the city.
It was quiet there.
Too quiet.
No reporters. No cameras. Just a tall fence, two guards at the gate, and a house that smelled like old wood and unanswered questions.
Mrs. Gable stayed with me.
She said she was “legally assigned protection,” but I knew the truth.
She didn’t want to leave me alone.
One night, I woke up to voices downstairs.
Low. Serious.
I crept to the top of the stairs.
Mrs. Gable was speaking with a man in a federal badge.
“They’re claiming the recording is edited,” he said.
“It’s not,” she replied sharply. “I’ve already verified the audio integrity twice.”
A pause.
Then the man slid a folder across the table.
“There’s something else.”
I held my breath.
“They’re saying Arthur Sterling wasn’t the only one planning the operation. There was a third name in the financial logs. Someone inside the investigation team.”
Mrs. Gable froze.
“That’s impossible.”
“It’s not,” he said. “And if the child testifies again, we may lose control of this case completely.”
My heart started beating too loud.
I stepped back… and the floor creaked.
Silence below.
Mrs. Gable looked up instantly.
“Eleanor?” she called gently.
I should have gone back to bed.
But I didn’t.
Because I had heard something I was never supposed to hear.
May you like
A name that hadn’t been spoken in court.
And it belonged to someone still free.
