Chapter 2: The Ledgerš„š„š„
Chapter 2: The Ledger
The stranger's name was Jack Mercer.
Former Army Ranger.
Former federal witness-protection contractor.
Current drifter.
At least, that was the short version.
As dusk settled over the Texas desert, Nora finally told him everything.
The women.
The fake debts.
The disappearances.
The ledger.
Most importantly, where she had hidden it.
Jack listened without interruption.
When she finished, he stared out the diner window.
"If that ledger is real, Maddox isn't just a trafficker."
"What do you mean?"
"Numbers this organized usually belong to bigger people."
Nora's stomach tightened.
She already knew.
The names in the ledger included businessmen, local officials, and even law enforcement officers.
People who were supposed to protect victims.
People who had been helping create them.
That night Jack drove her to the abandoned storage shed behind the diner.
Beneath the old coffee station they found a rusted metal box.
Inside was the original ledger.
Nora's hands trembled.
Seven months.
Seven months of running.
Seven months of fear.
And here it was.
Proof.
Then headlights appeared.
Dozens of them.
Surrounding the property.
Ray Maddox had arrived.
His SUV stopped twenty yards away.
He stepped out smiling.
"You should've kept running, Nora."
Men with rifles spread across the desert.
Jack counted quickly.
Too many.
Ray pointed at Nora.
"Give me the ledger and maybe you live."
Nora looked at Jack.
Jack looked at the horizon.
Then he smiled.
A strange smile.
The kind that made experienced criminals nervous.
"You know what's funny?" Jack said.
Ray frowned.
"What?"
Jack pulled out a satellite phone.
"I already sent copies."
Ray's face changed.
The smile vanished.
Sirens echoed faintly in the distance.
Then louder.
And louder.
Coming from every direction.
May you like
The trap had just closed.
But not on Nora.
