RONAN My heart raced. My stomach twisted into a hard knot. It took all my will not to connect to the network and start digging, to hunt down the posts and threads that had led my parents to this decision. A part of me screamed, demanding I check. Demanding I make sure my family was not falling for the same poisoned lies I had spent years fighting against at Fort Meade. If they were, I did not know the enemy’s endgame in driving people toward a single, central location. I only knew it was not for their protection. Nothing like that ever was. I clenched my hands into fists, my nails biting deep into my palms. The sharp sting grounded me. Pain cut through the surge of panic just enough to keep me steady. Pain was better than a mistake. One careless connection online could light me up like a beacon. She laughed softly, the sound thin and strained. “Even with your brother Lucas’s obsession with guns… we listened to the Pujari. We are going to the Sanctum Complex in town. The only good thing from the attacks in Kansas City is that our Sanctum was built like a fortress. We should be safe there with everyone. Our property is too open.” I reached toward the screen without thinking, my fingers hovering inches from the glass. I could not tell if she was trying to reassure me or convince herself. Her eyes flicked away from the camera as she frowned, the lines in her face deepening. “The family is all together, except for Karime. God only knows where she is.” She paused, drawing in a shaky breath. She sniffled and wiped at her eyes with the cuff of her shirt. “I pray you see this. I desperately want you to come back to me, my little boy.” She kissed her hand, pressed it to the camera, and ended the recording.The image froze. Mom’s face was turned slightly away, her hand still resting against the refrigerator screen. I stood there longer than I meant to, the quiet pressing in around me. Then I nodded once. My decision hardened into place. I turned sharply and found Sergeant Nguyen standing behind me. “I need to find my family.” The man shook his head, already firm. “We need to check in.” “I need to make sure they’re okay,” I said. My voice was low, edged with steel, as I glared at him. “You think you’re the only one with family?” Nguyen snapped back. He jabbed a finger toward the other two soldiers. “We all have people we fear for. But we have a job to do. If we fail, they are more likely to get hurt.”“You don’t understand.” I stepped closer, making sure my words landed. “Before I saved you, I was running counter AI operations at Fort Meade.” I let that hang there, reminding them of the debt whether they liked it or not. “Whoever is doing this used fake videos and posts to spread lies. Whoever sent those messages wants my family in one place with a lot of other people. Why do you think the enemy would do that?” Nguyen pushed past me without answering. He opened the refrigerator and pulled out the water pitcher. He carried it to the island and set it heavily beside Jackson and O’Brien, like the argument was already settled. “Listen to me!” I shouted. Nguyen grabbed a water bladder from the pile of gear and turned back. “I am listening,” he said. His voice was controlled. “You do not know for sure your family received false information. Their Sanctum might really be gathering everyone for safety.” I strode to the island and slammed my hands down on the countertop. The sound cracked through the room. “Aren’t you a reconnaissance unit?” I said. “Did you see bands of marauders burning homes here? I saw nothing when my drone swept the area. Nothing.” I leaned forward. “That’s when I found you. That’s when I decided to save you.” Jackson flicked a glance at Nguyen but kept working on O’Brien’s wound. His movements stayed steady and precise. O’Brien was pale and slick with sweat. Despite that, he was grinning, his eyes fixed on our argument like he was watching something he could not look away from. Sergeant Nguyen planted his fists on the stone counter. His knuckles whitened.His powerful frame leaned forward, elbows flared, his presence filling the space between us. His stare was unblinking and hard. “We are not changing our mission.” I mirrored his stance deliberately, mocking him. However intimidating the sergeant might have been under normal circumstances, he was nothing compared to what I had faced over the last two days. With my family on the line, my own safety did not even register. A thin smirk tugged at my mouth. “Since I am the only one with the access codes to my family’s Compact Cruiser,” I said calmly, “unless you plan to walk the whole way, we are going where I say.”