The road stretched out before us, a narrow ribbon of asphalt cutting through the dark, empty countryside. The headlights from Tyler's car barely pierced the night as we sped away from the diner, away from Archer. My heart was still racing from what had just happened, and every bump in the road made me jump. I couldn't shake the feeling that Archer would appear in the rearview mirror at any moment, ready to finish what he had started.
Tyler's knuckles were white as he gripped the steering wheel, his jaw tight with tension. He hadn't said a word since we left, but the weight of everything hung heavy between us. Lila sat in the back, her knees pulled up to her chest, her eyes staring blankly out the window. She hadn't spoken either, lost in her own world of fear and exhaustion.
"Where are we going?" I finally asked, breaking the thick silence.
Tyler glanced at me, his brow furrowed. "Anywhere but here. We need to stay ahead of Archer."
"I know that," I said, trying to keep my voice steady. "But we can't just keep driving with no plan. We need to figure out what we're going to do next."
He let out a frustrated sigh. "Look, I don't know, okay? We're running out of places to hide, and whoever that guy was back at the diner… he bought us some time, but we can't rely on him showing up again. We're on our own now."
I leaned back in my seat, my mind spinning with possibilities. Tyler was right. We couldn't just keep running forever. But the problem was, we didn't have anywhere safe to go. Thorne's reach was too vast, and Archer was relentless. The documents we had stolen from Lila's cabin were explosive enough to bring down Thorne's empire, but only if we lived long enough to use them.
"We need to get those files out," I said quietly, thinking aloud. "If we can get them into the right hands, we won't have to hide anymore. Thorne won't be able to silence us if the whole world knows what he's done."
Tyler nodded, but his expression remained grim. "Yeah, but it's not that simple, Emily. The moment we try to leak the files, we become targets. Thorne's people are everywhere. We need to find someone we can trust."
"I might know someone," Lila's voice came from the backseat, soft but steady.
I turned to face her, surprised. Lila hadn't offered much since we found her, too consumed by fear to think clearly. But now, there was a glimmer of determination in her eyes.
"Who?" Tyler asked, glancing at her in the rearview mirror.
"There's a journalist," Lila said, her voice hesitant. "Back when I was still working for Thorne, I heard about him. He's a ghost—someone who digs up dirt on people like Thorne, but he stays out of sight. If anyone could get these files out without getting caught, it's him."
"What's his name?" I asked, my pulse quickening.
"I don't know his real name," Lila admitted. "But he goes by 'The Whisperer.' He's not easy to find, but if we could track him down, he might help us."
Tyler frowned. "A ghost? That sounds risky. How do we even know he's real?"
"He's real," Lila insisted. "Thorne was paranoid about him. He hated that there was someone out there he couldn't control. The Whisperer's work has exposed powerful people before—he could do the same to Thorne."
I exchanged a look with Tyler. This was the first real lead we'd had in hours, and while it was a long shot, it was better than continuing to run with no plan.
"We don't have much of a choice," I said. "If Thorne's afraid of this guy, he's our best bet."
Tyler nodded reluctantly. "Okay. But how do we find him?"
Lila hesitated, her eyes flicking between us. "There's a contact I knew—someone who used to work with Thorne's legal team. She might know how to get in touch with him. I haven't spoken to her in years, but it's worth a try."
"Where is she?" Tyler asked.
"She's in the city," Lila replied, her voice uncertain. "But we'd be walking right into Thorne's territory. His people are everywhere in New York."
"Then we'll be careful," I said, my resolve hardening. "We don't have a choice. We need to get to this contact."
Tyler's eyes were grim, but he nodded, turning the car onto the highway, the city lights barely visible in the far distance. "It's a long shot, but it's the only one we've got."
***
The hours ticked by slowly as we drove toward the city, the dark landscape gradually giving way to the glow of urban sprawl. Every mile we traveled brought us closer to Thorne's reach, and the weight of that realization settled heavily on my shoulders. I kept glancing at my phone, half-expecting another message from Archer, or worse—an alert that someone had already found us.
But the phone remained silent. Too silent.
Lila dozed off in the backseat, exhaustion finally overtaking her, while Tyler and I remained on edge, too wired to sleep.
"How are you holding up?" Tyler asked quietly, keeping his eyes on the road.
I shrugged, staring out the window. "I don't know. I keep thinking about what happens if this goes wrong. If we don't get to this Whisperer guy, or if we do and Thorne finds out…"
"Then we fight," Tyler said simply. "We've come this far. We can't back down now."
I nodded, but the anxiety gnawing at me didn't let up. Tyler was right, but the stakes had never felt higher. We were walking into Thorne's world now, and one wrong move could cost us everything.
***
By the time we reached the outskirts of the city, dawn was beginning to break, casting a faint light over the skyline. Tyler pulled the car into a quiet alley, parking behind an old warehouse.
Lila stirred, sitting up in the backseat, her eyes bleary with sleep. "We're here?"
"We're close," Tyler said. "We'll find your contact and get the information we need. Then, we're out."
Lila nodded, though the fear in her eyes hadn't diminished. None of us were truly safe, but at least we had a plan—one last shot to take Thorne down before he took us out.
As we climbed out of the car, my phone buzzed in my pocket.
I pulled it out, dread pooling in my stomach.
The message was short, but it chilled me to the bone.
"I'm still coming for you. – Archer. "