Chapter 24: The Trauma of Trust
The secure van roared away from the harbor, the glow of the distant inferno shrinking in the rearview mirror. The air inside the vehicle was thick with the metallic smell of smoke, stress, and Liam's blood.
Evelyn, her face streaked with soot, turned immediately to Liam. He was leaning against the back seat, one hand clamped over his side where a tear in his jacket revealed an angry, bruising contusion.
"Liam, you're hurt," Evelyn said, her voice shaking. "We need to get you to a hospital."
"No hospitals," Liam gritted out, his breath ragged. "Too much paper. Too many questions. Thorne's network runs deeper than emergency rooms. It's just a broken rib, maybe two. Marcus, nearest safe medical contact?"
Marcus, focused on evasive driving, spoke calmly into his headset. "One secure location, forty minutes out. Ex-military medic. No questions, no records."
Evelyn quickly turned her attention to Dr. Vance, who was huddled beside Liam, clutching the seat. "Dr. Vance, are you stable? The drive is secured in Marcus's pack."
Vance nodded mutely, his eyes wide and vacant. He was physically present, but the shock of his escape and the near-fatal ambush had clearly taken a toll. He had traded his quiet, gilded cage for a firestorm.
"You have to stay focused, Doctor," Evelyn urged, trying to keep her own fear in check. "That drive is the cure—the physical proof that will destroy Thorne's defense."
"I know," Vance whispered, his voice cracking. "But they... they didn't send lawyers. They sent fire. He wanted to destroy me, and the work."
The Silent Language of Injury
The journey was agonizing. Evelyn, ignoring Liam's protests, carefully examined his injury. The impact from the fall and the struggle had clearly damaged his ribs. He winced with every bump in the road, but maintained a steely focus, occasionally instructing Marcus on a turn or a change in speed.
"You didn't jump," Evelyn murmured, remembering the moment he chose to tackle the agent rather than leap to safety.
Liam's eyes met hers in the darkness of the van. "If I had jumped, they would have been on you in seconds. I had to ensure your escape and the asset's protection."
"I am not an asset, Liam. Neither is Dr. Vance," Evelyn retorted, even as she gently applied pressure to his wound with a clean cloth.
"In a war, you are," Liam stated simply. "And I am paid to protect the asset. That is my mission."
But the intensity in his eyes—the raw relief that had flashed across his face when he saw her—contradicted his professional detachment. Evelyn realized the depth of his commitment was no longer just about the paycheck. The physical risk he took had forged a bond between them that surpassed the boundaries of client and contractor.
Marcus's Intervention
Forty minutes later, they arrived at a non-descript industrial unit. Marcus killed the engine and opened the back to a woman with kind, capable hands who immediately took charge of Liam.
While the medic worked on Liam inside the unit, Marcus and Evelyn sat outside, the cool night air clearing their heads.
"You need to know the cost of tonight," Marcus said, running a hand through his hair. "Thorne's move—the destruction of the warehouse—it's a massive escalation. He is now undeniably a criminal actor. He crossed the line from corporate fraud to attempted evidence destruction and violence."
"And the drive?"
Marcus pulled the specialist backpack from his shoulder, unzipping the shielded compartment. He carefully removed the flash drive, which was cool and intact. "The drive is safe. This is the smoking gun the SEC and the Senate committee have been begging for. Not just testimony, but the physical patent and the internal memos showing Aethel ordered the suppression."
"We won the night, then," Evelyn stated, feeling a surge of defiant triumph.
"You won the battle, Evelyn," Marcus corrected, his voice stern. "But you've just made yourself the highest-priority target on the planet. Thorne knows you have the physical proof, and he knows you rely on two people: me and Liam. He's going to hit us where we are weakest. He can't buy you, so he'll try to break your support structure."
Evelyn looked toward the unit where the medic was tending to Liam. The sound of the man who saved her life was muffled but present. She thought of Marcus, who was risking his freedom and business to help her. She thought of Aris Thorne, crushed by debt.
The weight of the truth suddenly felt crushing. She had the evidence, but the cost of getting it was the vulnerability of every person she trusted.
"We deliver this to Senator Sharma immediately," Evelyn resolved. "We end this before he can hit back."
Marcus nodded. "We deliver it. But first, we need to make sure our foundations are secure. Because Julian Thorne will be looking for the weakest link, and he has limitless money to exploit it."