Chapter 8: The Captain Nobody Knew

The Resolute began moving faster.

I could feel it through the floor.

The ship wasn’t responding to normal commands.

Someone had taken control of navigation.

And that someone was not Colonel Victor Kane.

That was the part that bothered me most.

Kane was a monster.

But monsters were easier to understand when you knew where they stood.

Elias Vale was different.

He had spent years hiding in the background.

Watching.

Planning.

Waiting.

I turned toward Kane.

“You knew he was alive.””

Kane didn’t answer.

That was enough.

“How long?””

His eyes stayed on the blank screen.

“Seven years.””

Daniel stepped forward.

“Seven years?””

Kane looked at him.

“Yes.””

“And you said nothing?””

“I tried.””

Daniel laughed bitterly.

“You tried?””

Kane looked exhausted.

“You think I had power?””

The statement shocked me.

Because it was the first time Kane sounded human.

Not because I believed him.

Because I realized something.

Victor Kane had been controlling people.

But someone had been controlling Victor Kane.

I needed answers.

“Start from the beginning.””

Kane looked at the hidden room.

“Vale created a program.””

“What kind of program?””

“A loyalty test.””

I frowned.

“For sailors?””

“For everyone.””

Voss spoke quietly.

“He wanted to know how far people would go when they believed their authority was threatened.””

Daniel stared at him.

“You’re saying this was all a test?””

Kane nodded.

“At first.””

“And then?””

Kane looked away.

“Then Vale stopped caring about the results.””

The room went silent.

I thought about Tyler Brooks.

A nineteen-year-old sailor collapsing in the heat.

I thought about all the people whose names were on the wall.

“People died.””

Kane didn’t argue.

“Yes.””

The honesty was unsettling.

“Why continue?””

Kane looked at me.

“Because once you know something terrible, you become part of it.””

That was the excuse people always used.

Fear.

Pressure.

No way out.

But every person still made choices.

And Kane made his.

My radio activated again.

Marcus.

“Hannah, listen carefully.””

I answered.

“What?””

“We have a major problem.””

“Another one?””

“This is different.””

I waited.

“The Resolute has changed its identification signal.””

I frowned.

“What does that mean?””

“It means according to every system outside the ship…”

He paused.

“The Resolute no longer exists.””

Nobody spoke.

The meaning was clear.

Someone had erased the ship.

Its location.

Its identity.

Its mission.

Everything.

Voss whispered:

“Vale.””

I looked at Kane.

“Where is he?””

Kane stared toward the ceiling.

“He’s not hiding on the ship.””

“Then where?””

Kane hesitated.

That hesitation told me the answer was important.

“He’s in command.””

I looked confused.

“What?””

Kane pointed upward.

“The person controlling the ship.””

The room froze.

“The captain?””

Kane nodded.

“Vale replaced the command structure years ago.””

Daniel stepped back.

“That’s impossible.””

“No.””

Kane looked at him.

“That’s exactly what he wanted everyone to believe.””

The ship suddenly went dark.

Emergency lights turned on.

Then the intercom activated.

A voice filled the room.

Elias Vale.

“Agent Cole.””

I looked upward.

“You’ve done well.””

My hands tightened.

“Where are you?””

A quiet laugh echoed.

“Closer than you think.””

“You erased this ship.””

“No.””

A pause.

“I freed it.””

I stepped toward the speaker.

“You’re holding hundreds of people hostage.””

“No.””

His voice remained calm.

“I’m showing them the truth.””

“What truth?””

Another pause.

Then:

“That most people obey whoever they believe is in control.””

I looked at Kane.

At Voss.

At Daniel.

Vale continued.

“And now I want to see what happens when nobody is.””

The lights flickered again.

Then another message appeared on the hidden computer.

Not from Marcus.

Not from NCIS.

From Vale.

A single sentence.

“Bring me Hannah Mercer Cole.””

I stared at the screen.

Because beneath the message was something else.

A photograph.

A picture taken aboard the Resolute earlier that morning.

Before I was thrown overboard.

Before I entered Deck Four.

Before I knew the truth.

The photo showed me standing beside Tyler Brooks.

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And written beneath it was a message.

“Your first mistake was believing he was only a victim.””