Nia Evelyn, two Vietnam era veterans from the church, and a pair of deacons who had witnessed the siege. "Three separate cloud servers, " Nia said, her voice steady despite the exhaustion. "Each file package releases automatically if I don't enter a code every 2 hours. " Her fingers moved across the keyboard, organizing the evidence. The body cam audio from the porch, the warehouse footage of Larkin and Bryce, her father's brass locust files showing the weapons technology pipeline.
Deacon Williams nodded, his weathered face grim. Already got 15 witnesses ready to move on your signal. Good folks who won't back down. Position them here and here. Nia marked locations on the map.
Far enough from the training facility to stay legal, close enough to document everything. She checked her watch. Once the evidence starts releasing, Larkin and Bryce will know they're exposed. That's when they'll try to move Tessa. They'll expect you to attack at night, said Marcus, one of the veterans.
Coming in daylight throws their playbook. A soft knock interrupted them. Evelyn checked the security camera she'd installed after the garage fire. Her breath caught. It's Daniel.
Nia moved to the door, gun ready. But when Evelyn opened it, Daniel stumbled in, his face bruised and his suit torn. Dried blood crusted his temple. "They had me in a county holding room, " he gasped as they helped him to a chair. "Heard deputies talking about moving your daughter at sunrise.
I got loose during a shift change. Nia's hand tightened on his shoulder. Tessa, is she alive? Still at the training site. They're keeping her in the old equipment garage.
He accepted a water bottle with shaking hands. But Cole, they killed him an hour ago. Made it look like suicide. The room went silent. Nia closed her eyes briefly.
He was trying to help at the end, wasn't he? Daniel nodded. They had his son on drug charges, threatened to send the boy to state prison if Cole didn't cooperate. When he finally broke and tried to warn us, he didn't need to finish. Nia returned to the laptop, her movements precise and controlled.
She wouldn't let Cole's death be meaningless. The evidence had to reach the right people at the right moment. Federal prosecutors, she said, uploading the first package, state police internal affairs, three national media outlets, and my father's old Pentagon contacts. Each file landed in a secured dead drop. Timed to release unless she stopped it.
Evelyn coordinated with the deacons, mapping witness positions around the training facility. My clerk friends at the courthouse are ready. The moment anything happens to you, they file emergency motions in three jurisdictions. The veterans studied the facility layout. Guard rotation likely follows standard sheriff's department shifts, Marcus said, changing over right about now.
Daniel struggled to his feet. I can show you the blind spots. They didn't hood me on the way in. He swayed but stayed upright. I'm going back with you.