Ashes and lies
910 Words
Chapter 13
The shrill wail of sirens pierced the night as Ethan’s car sped toward the Blackwood Sheriff’s Department.
Orange flames danced against the dark sky, visible from blocks away.
Amora’s stomach tightened.
“We’re too late,” she whispered.
Ethan didn’t answer.
His grip on the steering wheel tightened until his knuckles turned white.
When they arrived, firefighters were already battling the blaze. Thick black smoke billowed from the evidence wing while deputies rushed back and forth, carrying boxes and directing traffic.
Sheriff Daniel Brooks stood behind the police barricade, his uniform streaked with soot.
The moment he saw Ethan and Amora, he hurried toward them.
“You shouldn’t be here.”
“What happened?” Ethan asked.
The sheriff rubbed a tired hand over his face.
“The fire started in the evidence room.”
“Accident?”
Brooks’ expression hardened.
“No.”
“It was arson.”
Amora felt her heart sink.
“Noah’s evidence…”
Brooks lowered his head.
“Most of it is gone.”
Silence settled between them.
Eight years of records.
Photographs.
Statements.
Physical evidence.
Reduced to ashes.
⸻
Hours later, firefighters finally declared the blaze under control.
The air smelled of smoke and burnt wood.
Ethan walked through the damaged evidence room beside Sheriff Brooks.
Metal shelves had collapsed.
Charred folders lay scattered across the floor.
Water dripped steadily from the ceiling.
Someone hadn’t just started a fire.
They had made sure nothing survived.
Almost nothing.
Near the back wall, Ethan noticed a partially burned storage box wedged beneath a fallen cabinet.
“Help me.”
Brooks pushed the cabinet aside while Ethan pulled the box free.
Its lid had melted, but something inside had survived.
A sealed plastic evidence bag.
Amora carefully opened it.
Inside was an old cassette tape.
She looked at Ethan, confused.
“A cassette?”
He turned it over.
A faded label was attached.
Interview – N. Cole
Her breath caught.
“Noah.”
Brooks frowned.
“We don’t even have a cassette player anymore.”
Ethan slipped the tape into his coat pocket.
“I know someone who does.”
⸻
The drive back was quieter than before.
Each of them was lost in thought.
Finally, Amora broke the silence.
“Do you really think Noah recorded something important?”
“If someone tried this hard to destroy it…”
Ethan glanced at her.
“…I’d say yes.”
She looked out the window.
Raindrops streaked across the glass, blurring the lights of Blackwood.
Whoever was behind all this wasn’t just covering up the past.
They were still protecting something.
Or someone.
⸻
Ethan pulled into the driveway of a small farmhouse on the edge of town.
It sat alone, surrounded by fields and ancient oak trees.
“This is where we’re listening to it?”
He nodded.
“My uncle lives here.”
“He collects old radios, record players… anything vintage.”
The front door opened before they reached it.
An elderly man with silver hair smiled warmly.
“Ethan.”
“It’s been a while.”
“It has.”
The old man’s smile faded when he noticed Amora.
“You must be Noah’s sister.”
Amora blinked.
“You knew my brother?”
The man nodded sadly.
“He was one of the bravest young men I ever met.”
He stepped aside.
“Come in.”
⸻
Half an hour later, an old cassette player sat on the dining table.
The tape clicked into place.
Everyone fell silent.
Ethan pressed PLAY.
Static filled the room.
Then…
A familiar voice.
Noah.
“If you’re listening to this…”
A lump formed in Amora’s throat.
“…then I probably ran out of time.”
Her eyes filled with tears.
“I’ve gathered enough evidence to expose the people behind Project Raven.”
The tape crackled.
“There are five of them.”
Another burst of static.
“I’ve already identified three.”
The sound distorted again.
Then Noah clearly spoke three names.
“Richard Hawthorne…”
“…Michael Carter…”
“…”
The tape screeched violently.
The third name disappeared beneath the static.
“No…” Amora whispered.
The recording continued.
“If anything happens to me…”
Static.
“…don’t trust…”
More static.
Then—
The tape stopped.
The machine clicked.
Silence.
Ethan immediately rewound it.
Nothing.
The final minute of the recording had been destroyed by the fire.
Amora wiped away a tear.
“We were so close.”
Ethan stared at the cassette.
“No.”
He leaned closer to the player.
“We weren’t.”
“What do you mean?”
He pointed to the tape.
“Someone erased the end.”
Her eyes widened.
“You think it was done before the fire?”
He nodded.
“The tape didn’t burn.”
“It was edited.”
Which meant one terrifying thing.
Someone had known about Noah’s recording…
Long before tonight.
As they sat in stunned silence, Ethan’s uncle looked out the living room window.
His face suddenly went pale.
“Ethan…”
“What is it?”
The old man pointed toward the dark field beyond the house.
A pair of headlights had appeared.
Then another.
And another.
Three black SUVs rolled slowly through the farm gate.
Their engines stopped.
Car doors opened.
Men in dark suits stepped out.
One of them looked toward the house.
Then slowly smiled.
“They found us.”
- Writer
