Episode 7: Hunted
1200 Words
Episode 7: Hunted
The air in the motel room felt heavy, suffocating. Emma Carter sat on the edge of the bed, flipping through the stolen documents again. Every word, every classified term, confirmed the horrifying truth: Solomon Industries was behind The Watcher. They had the power to erase people from existence, and now, she was on their list.
Her burner phone buzzed. She answered immediately.
“Tell me you have a plan,” she said, keeping her voice low.
Ben Whitaker sighed. “Emma, it’s worse than we thought. The cops aren’t just looking for you—they’re hunting you. Your face is on every news channel. They’ve painted you as a rogue detective who snapped, killed someone, and vanished.”
Emma closed her eyes, suppressing a curse. They were boxing her in, making her a target for every cop, bounty hunter, and opportunist out there.
“They froze your accounts too,” Ben continued. “You won’t be able to use your credit cards, bank account, or anything tied to your name.”
“They want me desperate,” Emma muttered.
Ben’s voice was grim. “And predictable. If you go to anyone from your past, they’ll be waiting.”
Emma exhaled sharply. “Then I need to vanish before they find me.”
There was a pause. Then Ben said, “I might know someone who can help.”
Emma sat up. “Who?”
“Julian Cross. Ex-intelligence, went dark years ago after leaking classified black ops documents. If anyone can get you off the grid, it’s him.”
Emma frowned. “And you trust him?”
Ben hesitated. “No. But right now, you don’t have many options.”
She glanced at the clock. Every second she stayed in one place was a risk. “Where do I find him?”
Ben gave her an address—a remote safe house in the woods outside the city.
“Emma,” he added, “be careful. Cross doesn’t trust anyone.”
Emma grabbed her jacket. “Neither do I.”
---
A Shadow Closing In
Emma drove through the night, taking back roads to avoid police checkpoints. She kept her head down, changed routes twice, and stopped only once—to ditch her phone. If The Watcher was tracking her, she couldn’t risk them tracing her calls.
She was halfway to Julian Cross’s safe house when she spotted the black SUV.
It had been following her for the last five miles, keeping a careful distance, never overtaking her.
Emma’s pulse quickened. They’d found her.
Her mind raced through options. She couldn’t outrun them forever. She needed a trap.
Spotting an upcoming intersection, she made a sudden right turn onto a dirt road, speeding into the dense forest. The SUV followed immediately.
Emma floored the gas, weaving between trees, kicking up dust. The SUV stayed close, gaining ground.
Then she saw it—a narrow bridge over a deep ravine.
She yanked the steering wheel hard. At the last second, she veered left instead of crossing the bridge, sending her car straight down a steep incline into the trees.
The SUV didn’t have time to react. It sped onto the bridge—
—and Emma watched as an explosive charge detonated beneath it.
Flames shot into the air. The SUV flipped, metal twisting, before plummeting into the ravine.
Emma gritted her teeth. They’d laid a trap for her. But she’d turned it against them.
She didn’t stay to check the wreckage. She climbed back onto the road and ran.
---
Julian Cross
By the time she reached the safe house, dawn was breaking. The cabin was small, hidden deep in the woods, barely visible through the trees.
Emma approached cautiously. Julian Cross was a ghost. If he didn’t want to be found, she wouldn’t find him.
She knocked once.
Silence.
She knocked again. “Julian, I know you’re in there.”
A metallic click sounded behind her.
Emma froze.
“Hands where I can see them,” a voice said. Deep. Steady.
She raised her hands and slowly turned.
Julian Cross stood a few feet away, a rifle aimed at her chest. He was in his late forties, lean but strong, with graying hair and sharp eyes that missed nothing.
“Ben sent me,” Emma said calmly.
Julian didn’t lower the rifle. “That’s a shame.”
Emma’s eyes narrowed. “I need to disappear. And you know how to make that happen.”
Julian studied her for a long moment. Then, finally, he lowered the g*n. “Inside. Now.”
---
A New Identity or a Death Sentence?
Inside, the cabin was sparsely furnished but packed with high-tech equipment. Multiple screens glowed with encrypted data, surveillance feeds, and false identity documents in various stages of completion.
Julian gestured for Emma to sit.
“You pissed off some very dangerous people,” he said, sitting across from her.
Emma scoffed. “Tell me something I don’t know.”
Julian leaned forward. “I don’t do charity work, Carter. If I help you disappear, it comes at a cost.”
Emma met his gaze. “Name it.”
Julian studied her before speaking. “Information. You have something The Watcher doesn’t want getting out. If I make you vanish, I want to know what’s in those files.”
Emma hesitated. She didn’t trust him. But she didn’t have a choice.
She pulled out the stolen documents and slid them across the table.
Julian flipped through the pages, his expression unreadable. Then, he stopped on a page labeled ‘Erasure Targets: Phase 2.’
His jaw tightened. “You’re on this list.”
Emma exhaled. “I figured.”
Julian continued reading. Then, suddenly, his eyes darkened. He slid the paper toward her.
She glanced down—and felt the blood drain from her face.
Ben Whitaker’s name was on the list.
Emma’s heart pounded. “They’re going after him.”
Julian’s voice was grim. “He helped you. That makes him a loose end.”
Emma shot to her feet. “I have to warn him.”
Julian grabbed her wrist. “You leave now, you won’t make it back. They’ll be waiting.”
Emma yanked free. “Then I’ll make them regret it.”
Julian watched her for a moment, then sighed. “If you’re really going back, you’ll need a way to fight back.”
He reached into a drawer and tossed something onto the table.
Emma looked down. A new ID. A passport. A burner phone.
And a g*n.
“Consider this your only shot,” Julian said. “You screw up, you won’t get another.”
Emma grabbed the g*n and tucked it into her belt. “I don’t plan on screwing up.”
She turned to leave, but Julian spoke again.
“You’re not the first person to go after The Watcher.”
Emma stopped. “And?”
Julian’s expression was cold. “No one else has survived.”
Emma smirked. “Then I guess I’ll be the first.”
She walked out the door, ready to do whatever it took.
Ben was in danger.
And Emma Carter wasn’t about to lose another friend.
- Writer
