Chapter 3 - The Man Who Knew Too Much
Noah and Claire heard Mercer walking across the barn floor.
"Come out," he said.
Noah looked around.
The tunnel had no other visible exit.
Claire whispered, "We're trapped."
Noah scanned the walls.
Pipes.
Crates.
Old concrete.
Then he saw something.
A narrow shaft behind the shelves.
He pulled the boxes away.
Cold air moved through it.
"There's a vent."
"It's too small."
"We'll make it bigger."
He grabbed a crowbar.
Above them, Mercer called again.
"You can't hide forever."
Noah swung the crowbar into the concrete.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
The opening widened.
Claire crawled first.
Noah followed.
They emerged behind the barn through a drainage culvert covered in weeds.
Mercer's truck sat beside the road.
He was gone.
Noah didn't speak until they reached the farmhouse.
"He's going to kill us."
Claire shook her head.
"Why?"
"Because Dad said they came for him."
"Maybe they just want the land."
Noah looked at her.
"Then why would they lock us underground?"
She had no answer.
The next morning, Noah contacted the county sheriff.
Sheriff Daniel Reed was a longtime friend of their father.
They met at the station.
Noah told him everything.
Reed listened.
When Noah finished, the sheriff stared at the table.
"Your father told me something once."
"What?"
"That if anything ever happened to him, I should look into reservoir release records."
Noah's heart skipped.
"Did you?"
Reed looked away.
"I tried."
"And?"
"My supervisor told me to drop it."
"Who was your supervisor?"
"Chief Harlan."
"Is he still around?"
"No."
"Where is he?"
"Dead."
Noah's stomach turned.
"How?"
"Stroke."
Reed leaned forward.
"Listen to me. I don't know what your father was mixed up in, but this county has had people disappear around property disputes for years."
"So why didn't you tell me?"
"Because I didn't have proof."
"Now we do."
Reed shook his head.
"That tape won't stand up in court by itself."
"What will?"
"Financial records. Reservoir control logs. County contracts."
Noah thought about the restricted corridor.
"Where do I find those?"
Reed looked toward the hallway.
"The archives."
That afternoon, Noah went back.
This time, he wasn't searching as a confused farmer.
He was searching as a man who understood he might be fighting for his family's life.
Claire stayed with him.
They spent six hours studying flood management records.
At 4:18, Claire found a discrepancy.
"Look."
A release had been authorized at 4:52 a.m.
The official report said the decision was made at 5:36.
Noah stared.
"Forty-four minutes."
"Someone changed the timestamp."
"Who signed the original?"
Claire pointed.
"G. Mercer."
Noah's pulse raced.
"He's not an engineer."
"No."
"Why could he authorize a reservoir release?"
Claire kept reading.
"He couldn't."
They found the name of the original engineer.
Dr. Thomas Bell.
Noah recognized it.
"He's the one who died in that workplace accident."
Claire looked up.
"You're right."
Thomas Bell had been killed in a construction accident eleven years earlier.
Noah remembered it because his father had attended the funeral.
The two cases were beginning to connect.
Noah made copies.
Someone stepped behind them.
"Looking for something?"
They turned.
Evelyn Hart.
Noah frowned.
"You followed us."
"I knew you'd come here."
"Why?"
"Because your father called me before he died."
Noah stared.
"When?"
"Two days before his heart attack."
Claire stepped closer.
"What did he say?"
Evelyn hesitated.
"He said he'd finally found proof."
"What proof?"
"That the reservoir was being manipulated."
Noah's breathing became shallow.
"Then why didn't he give it to you?"
"He tried."
"When?"
"The night before he died."
"Where?"
"At my office."
"Did you meet?"
"Yes."
"And then?"
Evelyn looked down.
"He never arrived."
Noah felt cold.
"My father died the next morning."
Evelyn nodded.
"I know."
"How?"
"Because he called me at 4:17 a.m."
Noah froze.
"What did he say?"
"Just five words."
"What words?"
"Don't trust the bank."
Noah stared.
Then the lights in the archive building went out.
A crash sounded in the hallway.
Evelyn grabbed Noah's arm.
"Run."
They sprinted toward the rear exit.
Someone chased them.
Footsteps.
Heavy.
Fast.
Noah pushed the door open.
They reached the parking lot.
A black SUV accelerated toward them.
Evelyn screamed.
Noah shoved Claire aside.
The vehicle swerved and clipped a concrete post.
Then sped away.
Sheriff Reed arrived minutes later.
He looked at the tire marks.
"We need to get you somewhere safe."
Noah shook his head.
"I'm not leaving my farm."
Reed looked at him.
"Then put cameras around it."
That night, Noah installed temporary security cameras.
At 2:14 a.m., one caught a man entering the old barn.
Noah watched the footage on his phone.
The man wore a hood.
He entered through the rear door.
Then he emerged ten minutes later carrying a metal box.
Noah called Reed.
The sheriff arrived with two deputies.
They searched the barn.
The box was gone.
But the ground outside contained footprints.
One bootprint had a distinctive shape.
A crescent cut across the heel.
Reed examined it.
"Mercer's boots."
Noah stared.
"You sure?"
"I've seen them."
"Then arrest him."
"We need more."
Noah clenched his jaw.
Then his phone rang.
Unknown number.
He answered.
Nobody spoke.
A few seconds later, a recording played.
His father's voice.
"Noah, if you're hearing this, don't go to the farm."
The message ended.
Noah stared at the screen.
Sheriff Reed looked at him.
"Where did that come from?"
"I don't know."
Claire whispered, "Someone has been inside the system."
Noah looked toward the dark road.
Suddenly, headlights appeared.
A vehicle stopped outside the farmhouse.
Noah reached for the gun locked in the cabinet.
The driver's door opened.
A young woman stepped out.
She raised both hands.
"My name is Mara Bell."
Noah froze.
"Thomas Bell's daughter."
May you like
She walked toward the porch.
"I know who killed my father."
