The morning of the final day arrived with perfect weather that seemed to mock the internal chaos I was experiencing. Clear skies, comfortable temperature, ideal conditions for completing the last critical network activations that would finalize the restoration project.
But all I could think about was how thoroughly I had failed to secure the one thing that had made all of these compromises worthwhile.
I never gave Gabriel the full consultation he needed. Our conversation had been interrupted by Santos's betrayal before I could provide anything more than the most basic strategic considerations about relocation. Gabriel had escaped, his organization had scattered into the forest, and I had never received the informant's contact information that was supposed to be my payment for helping him evade capture.
