Page 181 of Broken Oath

“Separate them.”

Rook rose.

Sarah scanned the ridge.

Marcus was gone.

The knowledge settled over her.

Rook stepped beside her.

“We’ll find him.”

“You can’t promise that.”

“I just did.”

She looked at him.

Before she could respond, Fathom’s voice entered their radios.

“I confirmed Lane’s connection to the mountain.”

Everyone went still.

“What did you find?” Rook asked.

“Lane issued the final operational-security clearance twelve hours before insertion.”

The clearance that declared the mission secure.

The mission that had been compromised.

“He knew,” Sarah said.

“Maybe,” Rook answered. “Or someone deceived him too.”

She looked at him sharply.

“You still think he could be innocent?”

“No. I think we need proof strong enough that no one can bury it.”

Fathom continued.

“There’s more. Lane’s authorization code appears in the deleted message archive.”

Rook’s pulse kicked.

“The warning Sarah sent?”

“Yes.”

Sarah went perfectly still.

Fathom’s voice hardened.

“Marcus Lane intercepted the warning and deleted it before it reached Rook.”