Page 66 of Torgash

Chapter Thirteen

Ash

The war room is silent except for Santos's breathing.

"I found her badge on the desk this morning," he says, shoulders rigid by the strategy table. His uniform's wrinkled to shit, and he has dark circles under his eyes from pulling another all-nighter. "Service weapon locked in her drawer. Files stacked neatly. Even left her damn uniform hanging in the locker."

I stare at the thumb drive he dropped on the table. Santos looks like hell, deep lines around his eyes, and there's something else in his expression. Pity, maybe.

"This was with it," Santos continues, tapping the drive with one finger. "It's... you need to hear it. Before the others."

Santos hesitates. Fuck. That's never good. Whatever's on there has Santos, a guy who's dealt with bar fights and domestic calls for fifteen years, struggling for words.

"I listened to it," he admits, jaw working. "Had to know what I was dealing with."

"And?" I keep my voice level despite the dread building in my chest.

Santos meets my eyes directly. "It's her and Royce. A deal of some kind."

Christ. I force my expression to stay neutral even as my mind races through scenarios, none of them good. Santos reads my face, then digs into his pocket.

"There's more," he says, pulling out a folded piece of paper and sliding it across the table. "She left this, too."

I recognize Nova's handwriting immediately. Short, direct:Santos - This is everything you need. The recording proves bribery and conspiracy. Use it. Ash will know what to do with the rest. The families deserve justice. Make sure they get it. - N

Her badge sits there. The thing that meant everything to her, just abandoned on the table. She's gone.

Santos studies my face, then nods. "I'll be at the station if you need anything else." He turns to leave, pausing at the door.

"Take Knox with you," I tell him. Santos is still moving like every step hurts. "Kid needs to focus on something besides beating himself up, and you could use the backup."

Santos hesitates. "You sure? With Nova gone—"

"Station still needs to function. Town still needs protection." I meet his eyes. "That's what she'd want."

He nods, and some of the tension leaves his shoulders. "Thanks."

"For what it's worth," he adds, hand on the doorframe, "she believed in what we were doing. Whatever's on that recording... just remember that."

My hands are steady as I plug the drive into my laptop, though they shouldn't be. Nova vanishing without a word, leaving behind only evidence and her badge—that should have me tearing apart every road between here and Atlanta.

Instead, I'm locked down. Dead calm. The same fucking emptiness that settled in my bones when I realized a weak orc wouldn't survive the camps and I had to become something else or die.

The file opens after Santos leaves. Single audio recording, timestamp from this morning. I click play and Nova's voice fills the war room.

"I want the deal."

My teeth grind together. Her voice is cold. Certain. Nothing like the woman who'd whispered my real name in the dark.

Royce sounds smug as hell through the speakers. "Smart woman. I knew you'd see reason."

I lean forward, hands clenched, as Nova negotiates terms I never saw coming. Three months. Delayed appeals. Procedural roadblocks.

"The MC. Your... relationship with their leadership has been quite convenient."

The air leaves my lungs, waiting for her response.

"You're seeing what I wanted you to see." Her voice is flat. Dead. "He's useful. Access to their intelligence, their resources. Nothing more."

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