Chapter 17 - THE FIRST HUNTER
The blackout lasted exactly seven minutes.
Seven minutes was all it took.
Seven minutes for someone to erase security footage.
Seven minutes for someone to enter the police station.
Seven minutes for someone to leave a message on my desk.
A single photograph.
My father.
Victor Kane.
And another man.
Standing together twenty-five years ago.
The man in the photo was smiling.
Like they were friends.
Like none of this was a secret.
On the back of the photograph were four words.
“Your father chose him.”
I stared at the message.
My father.
The man I spent my life believing was a victim.
Maybe he was.
Maybe he wasn’t.
That was the hardest part.
Everyone in this story had a reason.
Everyone had secrets.
Everyone had lied.
Hayes walked beside me.
“James.”
I didn’t answer.
“You need to understand something.”
“What?”
“Your father wasn’t just investigating Project Mirror.”
I looked at him.
“He helped build the early version.”
The words felt like a punch.
“No.”
Hayes didn’t look away.
“He believed he could control it.”
I thought about the notebook.
Trust nobody.
Not even yourself.
My father knew.
He knew I would eventually find this.
He knew I would hate him.
Maybe that was the price.
The station received another message.
This time on every screen.
A live video.
The man from the photograph appeared.
Older now.
Calm.
Perfectly dressed.
He looked like someone people would trust.
“Hello, James.”
I felt my stomach drop.
Because I knew his voice.
He was the voice from my nightmares.
The voice I couldn’t remember.
“You don’t know me.”
A pause.
“But I know everything about you.”
Hayes stepped closer.
“Who are you?”
The man smiled.
“My name is Adrian Vale.”
The name appeared across the screen.
SUBJECT ONE.
I froze.
Subject One.
Not Elias.
Not me.
Him.
Adrian continued.
“Victor always believed Elias was his greatest creation.”
A small smile.
“He was wrong.”
“He believed James was the perfect hunter.”
“Wrong again.”
The screen showed files.
Thousands.
Then one final file.
MY NAME.
Adrian continued.
“The perfect subject is not the monster.”
“Not the hunter.”
“The perfect subject is the person who controls both.”
The screen changed.
A map appeared.
Red dots spread across the country.
Activated subjects.
Waiting.
Adrian looked into the camera.
“Your investigation was never about solving a murder.”
“It was about preparing you.”
I clenched my fists.
“Preparing me for what?”
Adrian smiled.
“To take my place.”
The video ended.
Silence filled the room.
Then my phone vibrated.
A final message.
May you like
“Come find me.”
“Like you always do.”
