Chapter 3 - The Boy at the Gate
Marcus arrived at Adrian Voss's estate just before sunrise.
Daniel wanted him to remain inside the vehicle.
Marcus refused.
The boy stood across the road beneath a dead streetlamp.
Same gray hoodie.
Same guarded eyes.
Marcus rolled toward him.
The boy didn't run this time.
“You shouldn't be here.”
Marcus stopped.
“Neither should you.”
The boy looked toward Voss's house.
“You found the file.”
Marcus's expression changed.
“What file?”
The boy didn't answer.
Marcus leaned forward.
“Samuel Ward.”
For the first time, the boy looked genuinely shaken.
“You know that name.”
The boy stepped backward.
Marcus grabbed the wheel rims.
“Who are you?”
“My name is Eli.”
“Eli what?”
The boy swallowed.
“Ward.”
Marcus froze.
Daniel's hand moved instinctively toward his jacket.
Marcus stared at the child.
“Samuel Ward was your father?”
Eli shook his head.
“My grandfather.”
Marcus felt the entire puzzle shift.
“Where is he?”
Eli looked toward the house.
“Alive.”
Marcus's pulse jumped.
“The death certificate—”
“Fake.”
“Where is he?”
Eli's eyes filled with fear.
“I don't know anymore.”
Marcus frowned.
“What does that mean?”
“They moved him.”
“Who?”
Eli looked directly at Voss's estate.
“The people who made you sick.”
Marcus felt anger rise.
“I wasn't sick.”
“Yes, you were.”
Eli's answer surprised him.
“What?”
“They couldn't keep you paralyzed.”
“So they kept you weak.”
Marcus stared at him.
Eli pointed toward Marcus's medication bag.
“How many pills do you take every day?”
Marcus didn't answer.
Eli already knew.
“Seven.”
Marcus looked down.
“How do you know that?”
“Because my grandfather kept copies.”
“Copies of what?”
“Everything.”
A light turned on inside Voss's house.
Eli immediately stiffened.
“We have to go.”
Marcus caught his sleeve.
“Not until you tell me why.”
Eli looked at Marcus's hand.
Then at his face.
“Because you weren't supposed to survive the accident.”
Marcus released him.
The sentence seemed to empty the air around them.
“What?”
Eli whispered.
“The accident wasn't an accident.”
A vehicle engine started inside the estate.
Daniel moved quickly.
“Car.”
Eli panicked.
“They saw us.”
Daniel pushed Marcus toward their SUV.
Eli ran beside them.
The estate gate opened.
A black sedan emerged.
Daniel shoved Marcus into the vehicle.
“Drive.”
Their SUV accelerated.
Marcus looked through the rear window.
The sedan followed.
“Who are they?”
Eli didn't answer.
“Eli!”
“My grandfather called them the Circle.”
Marcus frowned.
“What Circle?”
“I don't know.”
The sedan accelerated.
Daniel's driver turned sharply onto another road.
Marcus gripped the seat.
“Why would anyone do this to me?”
Eli looked at him.
“Because of Hale Biodyne.”
Marcus went silent.
Hale Biodyne had been his father's company.
Marcus inherited controlling shares when he was twenty-eight.
After his accident, he had surrendered operational control.
His uncle, Richard Hale, became chairman.
Marcus hadn't attended a board meeting in nearly nine years.
“You're saying this was about my company?”
Eli shook his head.
“Not the company.”
“What then?”
“Something your father discovered.”
Marcus stared at him.
“My father died before my accident.”
“I know.”
“How?”
“Because that's where it started.”
Marcus's phone rang.
Richard Hale.
Marcus looked at the screen.
He didn't answer.
It rang again.
Eli stared at the name.
His face went pale.
“Don't.”
Marcus looked at him.
“You know my uncle?”
Eli whispered.
“My grandfather said if Richard Hale ever learns you can walk…”
The phone stopped ringing.
A message appeared.
Marcus opened it.
MARCUS, CALL ME IMMEDIATELY.
May you like
Eli finished his sentence.
“…people will start dying.”
