Continue the story and find out what happens next.

-14-

Crash!

The heavy oak front door of the cabin splintered inward as two men in tactical gear shoved their way into the living room, their heavy boots tracking mud onto the braided rug. Flashlights mounted on automatic rifles swept the room in blinding arcs of white light.

“Freeze! Federal marshals—stay where you are!” one of the men shouted, though his uniform bore no official insignia, only the blank black patches of private security operatives hired by the Carver Foundation.

Mae slammed the enter key on the laptop with a triumphant slap. Upload complete. She grabbed the flash drive, popped it out of the port, and hurled it across the room into the roaring fire in the stone hearth, where the plastic casing instantly melted into the glowing embers.

“You’re too late,” Mae yelled, stepping in front of Leah and the baby. “The files are already in the hands of the federal attorney general!”

The lead operative lowered his weapon slightly, his face hardening beneath his tactical helmet. He reached up, peeling off his balaclava to reveal the weathered, cold features of Greg, the burly orderly from Briar Glen.

“Smart girl,” Greg snarled, stepping further into the room. “Too bad nobody cares about federal whistleblowers when an unstable psychiatric patient has kidnapped an infant across state lines. Secure them.”

The second operative stepped forward, reaching out a heavy hand toward Leah.

Leah didn’t flinch. She took a slow step backward, her back pressing against the stone hearth, her arms wrapped tightly around her sleeping son. Her eyes locked onto Greg with a chilling intensity that made the hardened enforcer hesitate for a fraction of a second.

“You touch my son, and I swear to God I will burn this entire cabin down around all of us,” Leah said, her voice dropping into a quiet, venomous whisper that carried more terror than a scream.

Before Greg could answer, the sharp, wailing shriek of multiple police sirens cut through the pouring rain outside. Red and blue emergency lights flashed wildly through the cabin windows, painting the walls in pulsing arcs of crimson and cobalt.

The operative froze, his hand hovering in mid-air. “What is that?”

Heavy shouting echoed from the front yard, followed by the authoritative crack of a megaphone.

“Federal Bureau of Investigation! Drop your weapons and step away from the cabin with your hands on your heads!”

Greg’s face drained of color. He spun toward the door, raising his rifle just as the front windows shattered inward under a coordinated tactical breach. State police troopers and federal agents flooded the room, their weapons drawn, subduing the two private security operatives before they could even raise their barrels.

In the center of the chaos, a tall man in a dark trench coat stepped through the ruined doorway, badge gleaming in the harsh light of the flashlights. He looked around the room, his eyes landing on Leah, who stood by the stone hearth, shaking but unbroken, shielding her newborn son against her chest.

“Mrs. Carver?” the agent asked, flashing his identification. “I’m Agent Vance, Federal Healthcare Fraud Division. We received an encrypted data transfer from this location five minutes ago. Are you and the child alright?”