Page 176 of Silent Target

“The Chairman’s. No one was allowed to touch it.”

I lift the journal carefully.

The leather is soft from years of use.

The first page contains seven words.

IF YOU ARE READING THIS, I HAVE FAILED.

The next page is titled:

SUCCESSION DIRECTIVE.

Fathom leans closer. “That isn’t a journal.”

“No.”

I turn the page.

“It’s a contingency plan.”

The bunker shakes.

Concrete cracks somewhere outside the vault.

Victor roars through the barricade.

“You cannot escape!”

Caleb looks toward the entrance.

“He’s almost through.”

Rook points toward the cabinets.

“Take everything you can carry.”

His gaze lands on the journal in my hands.

“That leaves with us.”

I hold it against my chest.

“It will.”

39

CALEB

We move fast.

Fathom fills reinforced evidence bags with vacuum-sealed drives.

Falcon stacks ledgers beside Shark, who photographs every cabinet before removing files.

Cobra tears an entire shelf free from its frame.

“If we can’t read it now, we carry it.”