Maria didn't sleep that night.
She sat on the edge of her bed, staring at the message again and again.
> "You found the past. Now let's rewrite the future.
See you soon, Maria."
She knew what it was.
Not a threat.
An invitation.
But to what?
---
At sunrise, Ian stood on the balcony, phone pressed to his ear.
"Triple-check security," he said firmly. "No one comes in or out without clearance. Get me the updated footage from the alley, the estate, and Ross Global's lobby—last 48 hours."
Maria stepped out behind him. "We're not ahead of them, are we?"
He turned, jaw tight. "Not yet. But we will be."
She folded her arms. "Blake's key. The vault. That text. It's all too neat. Like they wanted us to find those files."
Ian hesitated. "If Blake's desperate, he could be cutting Dana loose. Making her the fall girl."
"Or," Maria said darkly, "they're both playing us."
She walked back inside, her fingers curling around the edge of the gold key again.
A weapon disguised as a gift.
---
By midday, a package arrived at Maria's office. No return address. Hand-delivered.
Inside: a silver flash drive.
Just like the ones from the vault.
But this one was labeled:
> "Rewind"
Ian plugged it into a burner laptop, isolating the network.
A video loaded.
Dana's face appeared.
Smiling.
Not the icy public smile she wore at galas—but something worse.
Warm. Personal.
Manipulative.
> "Hello, Maria," Dana's voice purred. "By now, you've seen the files. Impressive, aren't they? The story of your life, printed and boxed up like a biography before death."
> "But don't flatter yourself. You were never the main character."
> "You were bait."
Ian paused the video. "She's taunting us."
"No," Maria said softly. "She's laying a trap."
Ian hit play.
> "While you and Ian play detective, the real operation moves forward. And while you're digging up old bones, something new is being born. Something big. You were just the distraction, Maria."
> "But I'll give you a chance to change the ending."
> "Come alone. Midnight. Pier 9. Bring the drive. Leave Ian behind. Or he dies."
The screen went black.
---
Silence.
Then Ian stood. "No way in hell are you going alone."
Maria's voice was steady. "She won't expect me to listen."
Ian blinked. "You're planning to go?"
"Yes," she said. "But not the way she thinks."
She turned to the files still spread across her table. "I'll give her what she wants—a flash drive. But not the flash drive."
Ian caught on. "A fake?"
Maria nodded. "One filled with false data. Fabricated documents. A trail that leads her to believe she's won."
Ian crossed his arms. "And while she gloats...?"
"I'll record everything. I want her on camera admitting what she's done. I want to burn her with her own words."
Ian walked to her side. "We'll wire you up. I'll be nearby—close enough to strike if things go wrong."
Maria turned to him. "If anything happens to me, don't hesitate."
Ian's jaw flexed. "Don't talk like that."
"I have to," she said. "Because this time, if I don't finish what they started... someone else will."
---
Midnight. Pier 9.
The docks were nearly deserted, save for a flickering light above an old warehouse.
Maria stepped into the shadowed corridor alone. Black boots. Black coat. Red lipstick like war paint.
Inside, the air was cold. Smelled of salt and rust.
Dana stood in the center, wearing a long coat over a tight black dress. Her blond hair was pinned perfectly, her heels silent on the concrete.
"You came," Dana said, smiling. "How brave."
"You always did love theatrics," Maria replied.
Dana's eyes glittered. "I told you to come alone."
"I did."
But in a nearby van, Ian watched through a live feed, hand on a hidden mic switch, weapon holstered, ready.
Dana held out her hand. "The drive."
Maria tossed the fake to her.
Dana caught it. Slid it into a small tablet. Her smile widened as the files loaded—exactly what she expected.
> Operation Phase V.
Financials. Bribery chains.
Names of complicit board members.
All fake.
All designed to pull her deeper.
"See?" Dana said. "You were always predictable. So emotional. So eager to believe."
Maria's hand stayed steady at her side.
"And you?" she said coolly. "Still hiding behind mercenaries and threats?"
Dana laughed softly. "Oh, sweetheart. I don't need to hide."
Suddenly, two figures emerged from the shadows.
One was Victor.
The other wore a hood.
But Maria didn't flinch.
Because she had seen the movements before.
And she had guessed right.
The hood came off.
Mina.
Maria's former friend.
"Hello, Maria," Mina purred.
Maria's heart twisted—but her face remained still.
"You sold me out for money?"
"For power," Mina said.
Dana smiled. "Everyone has a price. Even those closest to you."
"But I'm still standing," Maria said calmly.
"For now."
Dana pulled a gun from her coat and pointed it at her.
"Let's end this."
---
BANG!
Dana staggered.
The gun clattered to the floor.
Ian stepped from behind the crates, weapon raised. "Drop it, Victor."
Victor moved—fast.
But Ian was faster.
In seconds, both Victor and Mina were disarmed and on their knees.
Maria kicked the fake drive across the floor. "Hope it was worth it."
Dana snarled, clutching her bleeding shoulder. "You set me up."
"I gave you the rope," Maria said. "You tied the noose."
---
Police sirens wailed in the distance—Noelle had already pinged the location with an emergency alert, tied to Maria's coordinates.
Dana looked up, eyes wide. "You won't win. Someone bigger is still out there."
Maria knelt beside her, gaze ice-cold.
"Then I'll find them next."