The corridor’s dim lighting led me to the last door on the right – a forgotten room behind the lab.
Few ever ventured here, making it the perfect place to speak freely. The buzz of fluorescent tubes echoed in the quiet hall, but as I approached, I sensed Jamie’s presence even before I saw her. We’d picked this location for a reason.
I locked the door behind us, the weight of what I had to say pressing down on me. Taking a deep breath, I looked at Jamie’s expectant face. “Jamie,” I began, my voice quivering slightly, “there’s something about Rashmoor you should know.”
She raised an eyebrow and tilted her head clearly intrigued by what I wanted to say. “Go on”, she briefly replied.
I hesitated, struggling with my guilt. “It wasn’t relevant before, but now, considering how deep you are into this.. I think you may be in danger.”
Jamie’s eyes grew wide, searching mine for answers. “Why? What did he do?”
Now she knows
With a deep sigh, I said, “Jamie… Rashmoor killed my son, Nate.”
Jamie’s eyes widened immeasurably and the very fabric of her reality seemed to be torn apart by the revelation. For a fleeting moment, her steady demeanour crumbled, revealing a raw vulnerability beneath. Her breath hitched, and her fingers instinctively reached up, pressing against her lips as if to stifle a cry or an exclamation. The usual spark in her eyes seemed to flicker, replaced with a dawning horror and disbelief. The weight of the words visibly wore down on her as the implications settled in. The room’s ambient sounds seemed to fade into a distant hum as she processed the enormity of my confession.
With disbelief shadowing her face she responded. “What?? But why? How? How do you know that?”
I closed my eyes as the painful memories resurfaced. “I encouraged Nate to look into a specific mining company in the Amazon. He was onto something big, something that could shake the very foundations of the US government and this world.”
Jamie took a step back. She was breathing rather deep and fast. “That’s… that’s serious, Jack.”
He is not what people think he is
I nodded. “Nate made a discovery linking high-ranking officials to some unspeakable acts. He called me when he was about to return. His voice trembled, mentioning Rashmoor’s name. It was the last time I heard from him.”
She gulped, trying to process the revelation. “We’ve been underestimating Rashmoor. If he could do that to your son, he won’t hesitate with us.”
I grasped her shoulders, urgency clear in my voice. “Jamie, Rashmoor’s not the man everyone in this lab thinks he is. Behind that professional exterior is a monster. A murderer. He’s onto us, and we need to be prepared.”
She nodded with a determination that replaced her earlier fear. “I have an idea what we need to do.”
