The Truth Unravels
200 Words
Victor Hale's words hung in the air like a storm cloud.
"Oh, but someone did."
Silence filled the warehouse. Ethan stared at the man he had once called a brother. Three years ago, Victor had supposedly died in a devastating explosion. Now he stood before them, alive and smiling.
"You staged your own death," Ethan said quietly.
Victor chuckled. "I had to. It was the only way to discover who was really pulling the strings."
Maya stepped closer to Ethan. "What is he talking about?"
Victor's smile faded.
"The betrayal didn't come from Ethan," he said. "It came from inside Blackwood Industries."
Daniel frowned. "That's impossible."
Victor reached into his coat and tossed a small flash drive onto the floor.
"Everything is on there—financial records, secret meetings, and the name of the real mastermind."
Before Ethan could pick it up, the warehouse lights suddenly went out.
A single gunshot echoed through the darkness.
Someone screamed.
When the emergency lights flickered back on, Victor was gone.
The flash drive had disappeared.
Only a message, painted in red across the warehouse wall, remained:
YOU'RE TOO LATE.
Ethan clenched his fists.
"The game isn't over," he whispered.
"It's only just beginning."
- Writer
