Page 72 of Echo: Line
My fingers trace idle patterns on her shoulder. Her breath evens out against my chest. Neither of us speaks. There's nothing that needs saying.
She's here. I'm here. We survived.
And for right now, that has to be enough.
I'm half-asleep when the knock comes. Sharp. Urgent.
"Alex!" Tommy's voice carries through the door. "Sorry to interrupt, but you need to see this. Now."
I'm moving before I'm fully conscious. Pulling on pants, reaching for my weapon. Delaney sits up beside me, sheet clutched to her chest, instantly alert.
"What is it?" I call.
"Main room. Both of you. It's bad."
We dress in silence and follow Tommy down the hall. The whole team has reassembled in the cramped space. Kane stands in front of Tommy's laptop, his expression darker than I've seen it. Willa beside him looks furious. Sarah and Rourke exchange grim looks. Stryker's jaw is clenched tight.
"What happened?" Delaney asks.
Tommy hits play on the video feed.
The FBI Director appears on screen. Press conference setting. Serious expression. American flag backdrop. But behind him are images that make my blood run cold.
A federal building in ruins. Emergency vehicles everywhere. Bodies on stretchers. Smoke still rising from the wreckage.
"At 1400 hours today, a coordinated bombing attack targeted the FBI field office in Denver, Colorado." His voice is grave. "Seventeen federal agents are dead. Twenty-three wounded. This was a calculated terrorist attack on American law enforcement."
The feed cuts to security footage. Grainy but clear enough. A figure in tactical gear placing explosives. The timestamp shows two hours ago. The face is obscured but the build is right.
Then the image freezes. Enhances. A partial view of the bomber's face.
It's Delaney.
Or a damn good deepfake of her.
"We have identified the primary suspect as former FBI Special Agent Delaney Ward." The Director's voice hardens. "Ward has been radicalized by domestic terrorist organization Echo Ridge and has turned against her oath, her country, and her fellow agents."
More footage plays. Delaney's FBI photo. Then surveillance images from the gas station. Then the fabricated bombing footage edited together to look like a continuous timeline.
"An international arrest warrant has been issued through Interpol. Ward is wanted for domestic terrorism, mass murder of federal officers, and treason against the United States." He pauses. "The reward has been increased to ten million dollars. Additionally, we have authorized private military contractors and licensed bounty hunters to assist in her capture. Rules ofengagement: she is considered extremely dangerous and lethal force is authorized."
The screen splits. One side shows Delaney's face with WANTED - DEAD OR ALIVE underneath. The other shows the body count from Denver. Seventeen dead agents. Their photos arranged like a memorial.
"Anyone harboring or assisting Ward will be prosecuted as an accessory to terrorism. We will not rest until she is brought to justice for these heinous crimes."
The feed cuts to international news coverage. Her face is everywhere. CNN. BBC. Al Jazeera. Every major outlet in every country.
FBI AGENT TURNED TERRORIST. SEVENTEEN DEAD IN BOMBING. INTERNATIONAL MANHUNT UNDERWAY. SHOOT ON SIGHT ORDERS ISSUED.
Delaney stands frozen beside me. Her face has gone white. Not pale. White. Like every drop of blood has drained from her body.
"They murdered seventeen agents," she whispers. "Seventeen people. And they're blaming me."
"They fabricated the footage," Tommy says quickly. "It's a deepfake. I can prove it's fake, but?—"
"But no one will listen," Sarah finishes. "The Committee controls the narrative now."
Kane's hands are fists at his sides. "They didn't just burn you. They turned you into the most wanted terrorist in the world. Every contractor, every bounty hunter, every agency on the planet is hunting you now. With authorization to kill on sight."
