Chapter 6 - THE WOMAN IN THE MIRROR
Maya refused to believe she was important.
She wasn't a scientist.
She wasn't wealthy.
She wasn't powerful.
She was simply a woman who had lost her marriage and accepted a caregiving job.
But Richard showed her something.
A medical scan.
Her father's handwriting appeared in the margins.
Neural pattern authorization requires genetic confirmation.
Maya stared.
“My DNA?”
Richard nodded.
“Your father designed a security system.”
“What kind?”
“One that could only be activated by his biological child.”
“So Ethan needs me.”
“Yes.”
“And the pendant?”
“Probably contains the interface.”
Maya felt sick.
“Then why didn't they just take me?”
Richard's face hardened.
“Because your father anticipated that.”
“How?”
“He built a dead-man system.”
Richard explained.
If Maya disappeared, the research would automatically be sent to federal investigators.
If she were harmed, the same thing would happen.
The only way to access the files without triggering the system was through voluntary cooperation.
“That means they need me alive.”
“Yes.”
“Then why threaten me?”
“To scare you into cooperating.”
Maya looked at Richard.
“You're willing to risk everything for this?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Richard hesitated.
Then he answered honestly.
“Because people died.”
He looked away.
“My fiancée. Your father. My attorney. Employees who tried to expose Ethan.”
Maya whispered:
“And now me.”
Richard looked back.
“No.”
His voice was firm.
“I won't let you become another name on that list.”
The words affected her more than she expected.
Later that evening, Richard taught her how to access the hidden security system.
They found a recording.
Her father appeared on screen.
Older.
Tired.
But smiling.
“Maya, if you're seeing this, something went wrong.”
She covered her mouth.
Her father's voice continued.
“I never wanted you involved.”
Richard stood behind her.
“I developed Helix because I believed medicine should restore independence, not control people.”
The recording continued.
“Someone will eventually try to weaponize it.”
Then her father said something that made Maya freeze.
“The person you trust most may be the person who betrayed you.”
The recording ended.
Maya turned toward Richard.
“What does that mean?”
“I don't know.”
Suddenly the security system flashed red.
UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS.
Richard looked at the monitors.
Someone was entering the mansion.
Multiple people.
Maya grabbed his arm.
“Police?”
“No.”
“How do you know?”
“Police don't disable the cameras first.”
They heard footsteps downstairs.
Richard reached for a hidden drawer.
Inside was a handgun.
Maya stared.
“You have a gun?”
“I live with Ethan.”
“Fair point.”
He handed her the phone.
“If I tell you to run, run.”
“What about you?”
“I'll follow.”
They hid behind the library doors.
Three men entered.
Then Ethan.
And beside him stood Miguel.
Maya's blood froze.
Her ex-husband looked at her through the doorway.
Their eyes met.
Miguel whispered:
“Maya.”
She stepped forward.
“You lied to me.”
“Yes.”
“You destroyed our marriage.”
His eyes filled.
“I know.”
“You worked for Ethan.”
“Yes.”
Richard raised the gun.
Miguel quickly lifted his hands.
“I wasn't trying to hurt her.”
Ethan laughed.
“Enough with the reunion.”
He looked at Maya.
“Bring me the pendant.”
Maya stared at him.
Then smiled.
“You're too late.”
Ethan's expression changed.
“Why?”
“Because I gave it to the FBI.”
Silence.
Ethan's face twisted with fury.
But Miguel suddenly moved.
He attacked Ethan.
A gunshot exploded.
Miguel collapsed.
Maya screamed.
Richard fired back.
The men scattered.
Ethan disappeared into the darkness.
Maya dropped beside Miguel.
He was bleeding.
He looked up at her.
“I deserved your hatred.”
Maya shook her head through tears.
“Why did you do it?”
Miguel struggled to breathe.
“Because Ethan threatened your life.”
Maya froze.
“He told me if I didn't cooperate, you'd be next.”
Then Miguel whispered:
“But I never told him where your father hid the final file.”
Richard looked at Maya.
“What final file?”
Miguel smiled weakly.
“Your father hid it somewhere no one would think to look.”
“Where?”
May you like
Miguel closed his eyes.
“Inside the one thing he knew you'd never abandon.”
