The message glowed on Elena's laptop screen like an open wound.
"You trust the wrong man."
And below it, that photo.
Ryan, standing beside Evan Crane, shaking hands, smiling like they'd been allies for years.
Her stomach twisted. Her first instinct was disbelief.
Ryan had risked his life to save hers more than once. He was loyal, quick to protect Adrian, the first to stand up when danger loomed.
But the photo… the timestamp said otherwise. Three months ago. Long before the attacks started.
Elena's fingers trembled as she reached for her phone. "Adrian, you need to see this."
He arrived less than fifteen minutes later, his face pale from the drive, shirt half-buttoned, gun still holstered at his side. When he saw the image, his expression froze.
"Where did this come from?" he asked quietly.
"Anonymous message. It came through a ghost server," she replied. "No trace of the sender."
He stared at the screen, jaw tightening. "It could be doctored."
"Or it could be the truth."
Adrian's eyes met hers; steady, conflicted. "Ryan wouldn't betray me."
"Wouldn't he?" she whispered. "He's the one with full access to your system, your security logs. He could've erased Crane's trail, and none of us would've known."
He ran a hand through his hair, the gesture more tired than angry. "Ryan's been with me since before Phoenix existed. He's family."
Elena's voice softened. "Sometimes family hides the sharpest knives."
For a long moment, neither of them spoke. The only sound was the rain tapping against the window, relentless and cold.
Finally, Adrian said, "We'll confront him. But we do it smart. No accusations until we have proof."
They found Ryan in the lab, as usual, surrounded by screens, typing fast, muttering to himself. When he saw them, he straightened. "You look like you haven't slept in days. What happened?"
Adrian didn't answer. He simply placed a small drive on the desk. "What do you know about Evan Crane?"
Ryan blinked, confusion flickering. "Crane? He's the guy we identified last night. I'm still pulling his records"
"Don't," Adrian cut in. His tone was calm, but sharp. "I already have them."
Ryan frowned. "Okay… why the interrogation look? Did I miss something?"
Elena stepped forward and slid the laptop toward him, the photo open on screen.
Ryan froze. His face drained of color. "Where did you get this?"
"Answer the question," Adrian said.
Ryan looked between them, eyes wide. "This isn't what it looks like."
"Then tell me what it is," Adrian demanded. "Because from where I'm standing, it looks like you've been working with the man who's trying to kill us."
Ryan exhaled shakily, running both hands through his hair. "I wasn't working with him. I was tracking him."
"Tracking?" Elena asked, skeptical. "That handshake looks pretty friendly."
"He approached me months ago," Ryan said quickly. "Said he had information on Phoenix's data breach from two years back. I thought he was bluffing until he mentioned names only someone on the inside could've known. I played along to get closer, to find out what he wanted."
Adrian's tone softened slightly. "Why didn't you tell me?"
Ryan looked up, guilt shadowing his features. "Because he threatened your mother."
That stopped Adrian cold. "My mother?"
Ryan nodded. "He said if I told you, she'd disappear. I didn't know how far his reach went, and after what happened with your father"
"Don't," Adrian snapped. "Don't bring my father into this."
Ryan's shoulders slumped. "I was trying to protect you, man. Both of you. Crane's not just after money or power, he's trying to rewrite everything your father built."
Elena studied him, searching for any hint of a lie. His eyes were steady, voice trembling but honest. Still, something about the story didn't fit.
"Why didn't Crane just come after Adrian directly?" she asked. "Why target me?"
Ryan hesitated. "Because you weren't supposed to exist."
"What?"
Adrian turned sharply. "What the hell does that mean?"
Ryan swallowed hard. "Crane's been running deep recon on Phoenix's human resources. When Elena's identity resurfaced last year, it triggered an old file; one connected to a witness protection case from seven years ago. He said someone buried your name, Elena. Changed it. That's why he wanted you gone. You were the loose end."
Elena's heart stuttered. "Who buried it?"
Ryan's gaze flickered toward Adrian — just for a second.
Adrian's eyes narrowed. "What aren't you saying?"
Ryan looked at him, pain written across his face. "It was your father, Adrian. He's the one who hid her."
Silence.
The air itself seemed to pause.
Elena's throat tightened. "Your… father?"
Ryan nodded. "I don't know why. But whatever happened between your family and hers, it wasn't business. It was personal."
Adrian turned away, his hands clenching at his sides. "That's not possible. My father never even met her."
"Are you sure?" Ryan's voice was quiet, almost sympathetic. "Because Crane knew. He called her by name."
Elena felt the ground shift beneath her. Memories she didn't recognize flashed in fragments; a voice she couldn't place, the echo of her mother crying, a man's shadow in the doorway.
"I… I think I've heard that name before," she whispered. "Cole. Years ago."
Adrian spun to face her. "You're saying you remember my father?"
"I don't know. It's fuzzy." She pressed her temples. "But something about him, something about Phoenix, feels familiar."
Ryan's voice broke the silence. "He wasn't who you think he was, Adrian. None of them were. Your father, Crane, Margaret; they built Phoenix on secrets. You're standing in the middle of a legacy that was designed to destroy itself."
Adrian's voice hardened. "Then help me fix it."
Ryan nodded. "I will. But Crane's already making his next move. He's gathering people, old allies, black-market clients. If we don't move first, he'll erase every trace of this."
Adrian's tone turned cold, resolved. "Then we take him down."
Ryan exhaled in relief, but Elena's instincts screamed wait.
"Adrian," she said quietly, "something still doesn't add up. Who sent me that message? If Ryan's innocent, then someone's trying to turn us against each other."
Ryan frowned. "Message?"
Elena showed him the screen again.
He looked at it; and his expression changed. Subtle, too subtle.
But she saw it.
Adrian didn't. He was already thinking ahead, strategizing, trying to rebuild the trust between them. But Elena's eyes stayed on Ryan, watching the flicker of something in his gaze; fear, guilt, or calculation. She couldn't tell.
Hours later, as rain hammered against the windows, Elena found herself unable to sleep. She walked quietly through the dim corridor, the hum of servers whispering like ghosts.
She stopped outside Ryan's lab. The door was half-open. Light spilled from within.
Curiosity or instinct, made her push it open.
Ryan was at his desk, headset on, whispering into the mic.
Her pulse quickened. She couldn't hear the words clearly, until one slipped through.
"Crane."
Elena froze.
Ryan turned suddenly, saw her reflection in the glass, and ended the call. "Elena! What are you doing here?"
Her voice trembled. "Who were you talking to?"
He smiled faintly. Too calm. "Checking on a data lead. You couldn't sleep either?"
She forced a nod, backing away slowly. "Right. I'll, uh… see you in the morning."
As she turned, Ryan called after her. "Hey, Elena?"
She hesitated.
"Be careful who you trust," he said softly. "Not everyone's what they seem."
That night, as she lay awake beside Adrian, the rain whispering outside, her mind replayed Ryan's words.
Be careful who you trust.
The message.
The photo.
The way he said Crane's name.
And for the first time since meeting Adrian, a cold thought crept into her mind:
What if the enemy wasn't outside Phoenix at all?
What if he'd been beside them all along?