Chapter 6: The Mission That Never Ended
I stood across from Ryan Blake, unable to move.
The man in front of me was impossible.
For six years, I had carried his memory.
The last image I had of him was inside that ruined building during Nightfall.
Smoke.
Noise.
Confusion.
Then nothing.
The official report said Ryan never made it out.
The military gave him a memorial.
His name was carved into a wall with the others.
But he was standing in front of me.
Alive.
“You let everyone believe you were dead,” I said.
Ryan looked away.
“I had no choice.””
“There is always a choice.””
His expression hardened.
“You don’t know what happened after you left.””
My jaw tightened.
“I left because you ordered me to.””
Silence.
The words hung between us.
Ryan looked at the floor.
“Yes.””
The admission surprised me.
“You remember.””
“I remember everything.””
“Then explain.””
He walked toward the old combat area.
The same place where I had fought Cole two days earlier.
“The mission wasn’t an extraction.””
I frowned.
“What?””
“Nightfall wasn’t about recovering information.””
I watched him carefully.
“Then what was it?””
Ryan turned.
“It was about finding the traitor.””
My chest tightened.
“That was never in our briefing.””
“Because we weren’t supposed to know.””
The pieces began moving.
Slowly.
Painfully.
“You knew someone was compromised?””
Ryan nodded.
“We suspected it.””
“And you didn’t tell us?””
“I couldn’t.””
I stared at him.
“You trusted us with our lives, but not with the truth?””
His face showed regret.
“That was the mistake.””
I wanted to be angry.
I was angry.
But underneath that was something worse.
Disappointment.
Ryan had been the person I trusted most.
The person who trained me.
The person who believed I could lead.
“Who was the traitor?””
Ryan didn’t answer.
That told me everything.
“You know.””
“Yes.””
“Who?””
He looked at me.
“Someone you never suspected.””
The same words Mason had warned me about.
I stepped closer.
“Stop protecting them.””
“I’m not.””
“Then tell me.””
Ryan looked around the empty facility.
“They’re still here.””
My eyes narrowed.
“At Fort Grayson?””
“Yes.””
“And you knew?””
“I suspected.””
“Then why bring me here?””
“Because I needed to know if you were still the same person.””
I almost laughed.
“After six years?””
“Especially after six years.””
I stared at him.
“What does that mean?””
Ryan’s expression became serious.
“The person behind Nightfall wanted you to become something else.””
“I survived.””
“No.””
He shook his head.
“They wanted you to become someone who trusted nobody.””
The words hit harder because they were true.
I had spent years building walls.
Keeping distance.
Avoiding connections.
Maybe that was exactly what they wanted.
Ryan reached into his jacket.
He pulled out a small drive.
“I kept this hidden.””
“What is it?””
“Proof.””
I didn’t take it immediately.
“Proof of what?””
“The person who betrayed us.””
My eyes locked onto the drive.
“Why give it to me now?””
“Because they know I’m here.””
A chill moved through me.
“What?””
Ryan looked toward the entrance.
“They contacted me yesterday.””
“Who?””
He didn’t answer.
Instead, he said:
“They told me you were coming to Fort Grayson.””
My stomach tightened.
“No one knew.””
“I know.””
“Then how?””
Ryan’s expression became grim.
“Because someone inside this base has been controlling everything from the beginning.””
A sound interrupted us.
A door closing.
We both turned.
Someone was inside the facility.
Ryan immediately moved.
“Stay back.””
I almost smiled.
“Still giving orders?””
“Still ignoring them?””
For a second, it felt like the old days.
Then the lights shut off.
Total darkness.
A voice echoed through the training room.
“You two always were difficult to separate.””
My body went still.
I knew that voice.
Ryan knew it too.
Because his face changed instantly.
“No…”
The emergency lights flickered back on.
A figure stood near the entrance.
Wearing a Fort Grayson uniform.
Holding a folder.
And smiling.
Ryan whispered the name.
The name I never expected to hear.
“Sarah.””
My heart stopped.
Lieutenant Sarah Mitchell stepped into the light.
The medic who saved our lives.
The teammate who died beside us.
The person I had mourned for six years.
She looked at me calmly.
“Hello, Emily.””
May you like
Then she looked at Ryan.
“You should have stayed dead.””
