They left the hangar together.
Mara carried the memory module inside her jacket. Elena carried the documents. Daniel stayed close to Eva while the three sisters followed behind them.
Nobody spoke as they crossed the service road.
The private aircraft waited beyond the security gate.
Its engines were already running.
Mara stopped.
“That wasn't scheduled.”
Daniel looked at the aircraft.
“No.”
Elena's face tightened.
“They want us to board.”
Mara looked toward the terminal.
Several airport employees were moving normally.
Too normally.
Nobody appeared alarmed.
That was what frightened her.
A trap did not need to look like a trap.
It only needed to make every ordinary detail seem harmless.
Mara checked the old phone.
Another message arrived.
BOARD NOW.
Then a photograph appeared.
Eva standing inside the terminal.
But Eva was standing beside Mara in the parking area.
Mara's blood went cold.
She turned the screen toward Elena.
“The photo was taken earlier.”
Elena nodded.
“They've been tracking us.”
Daniel looked toward the roof.
“Cameras.”
Mara pointed.
“Probably.”
Claire stepped forward.
“What do we do?”
Mara thought quickly.
“We don't board.”
Daniel looked at her.
“If we refuse, they'll know we understand.”
“They already know.”
“Then why send us here?”
Mara looked at the aircraft.
“To make us believe Eva is the target.”
Elena shook her head.
“She is.”
“No.”
Mara pointed toward the hangar.
“They spent seven years hiding evidence.”
She pointed toward the aircraft.
“Now they suddenly want the girl in public.”
Daniel understood.
“They want the evidence.”
Mara nodded.
“Or the person carrying it.”
She looked at Elena.
“You brought the documents.”
Elena shook her head.
“Not all of them.”
Mara frowned.
“What is missing?”
“The original recording.”
“Where?”
Elena touched her coat.
“I never carried it.”
Mara looked toward Daniel.
“Where is it?”
Daniel's face changed.
“Your suitcase.”
Mara's eyes narrowed.
“The suitcase from the house.”
“Yes.”
“The one addressed to me.”
Daniel nodded.
“That's why they wanted me to find it.”
Mara suddenly understood.
The suitcase had not been a hiding place.
It had been a message.
Someone had wanted her to carry the evidence from the house to the airport.
The trap had begun before they ever arrived.
“Then they know where the original is.”
Elena whispered, “And they know you have it.”
Mara turned to the sisters.
“Stay with Eva.”
Claire nodded.
“Where are you going?”
“To change the plan.”
Mara walked toward the terminal.
Daniel followed.
“No.”
She stopped.
“You don't come with me.”
“I won't let you go alone.”
“You have three daughters and a woman you thought was dead. Protect them.”
Daniel stared at her.
Mara lowered her voice.
“You made enough decisions for everyone.”
He stopped.
She entered the terminal.
The building was bright and quiet.
A man in a dark security uniform approached.
“Ms. Voss?”
Mara looked at him.
“Yes.”
“Mr. Cole is expecting you.”
Of course.
Mara nodded.
“Where?”
“Private lounge.”
She followed.
The lounge door closed behind her.
Richard Cole stood beside the window.
He was older than she remembered.
White hair.
Navy suit.
Calm expression.
He smiled.
“Mara.”
“You remember me.”
“I remember everyone who worked Flight 417.”
“Then you remember the evacuation order.”
His smile disappeared.
“I remember.”
“You transmitted it.”
“No.”
Mara placed the memory module on the table.
His eyes moved to it.
“You're lying.”
Cole looked at the device.
“That equipment is obsolete.”
“It still contains the transmission.”
Cole was silent.
Mara stepped closer.
“Thomas Vale worked for you.”
“He worked under several departments.”
“You approved his access.”
“I approved hundreds of employees.”
“You knew about the hydraulic defect.”
Cole's face hardened.
“You don't understand what you're accusing me of.”
“I understand enough.”
She placed the forged document beside the module.
“My signature was used.”
Cole looked at it.
Then he sighed.
“Thomas made mistakes.”
“Did he?”
“Yes.”
“Was Flight 417 one of them?”
Cole looked toward the window.
“No.”
Mara waited.
“It was an operation.”
Her stomach tightened.
“An operation?”
“Your company had been investigating financial fraud.”
“That's not an answer.”
“Certain people were moving money through aircraft contracts.”
“Who?”
Cole looked directly at her.
“Daniel Harrow.”
Mara shook her head.
“You forged his identity too.”
“We used his company.”
“You stole his identity.”
“We protected the company.”
“By causing a crash?”
Cole's expression changed.
“No one intended the aircraft to crash.”
Mara felt a chill.
“What happened?”
“Thomas was supposed to force an emergency diversion.”
“But the hydraulic system failed.”
Cole nodded.
“That was not planned.”
“People died.”
“I know.”
“Eva disappeared.”
“We needed her separated from Elena.”
“Why?”
“Because Elena had the records.”
Mara stared at him.
“And Thomas?”
“Thomas panicked.”
“Where is he?”
Cole smiled faintly.
“You're asking the wrong question.”
Mara heard movement outside the door.
She turned.
Two security officers stood in the hallway.
Cole continued.
“The question is where Elena is going.”
Mara's heart dropped.
“You're afraid of her.”
“We are afraid of what she knows.”
“Then why let her survive?”
“We didn't.”
Mara stared at him.
Cole's voice remained calm.
“She died seven years ago.”
Mara's eyes narrowed.
“I just spoke to her.”
Cole smiled.
“No.”
He tapped the table.
“You spoke to someone who looks like her.”
Mara froze.
The door behind her opened.
Daniel stood there.
His face was pale.
“Elena?”
Mara turned.
The corridor beyond him was empty.
Daniel looked confused.
“What happened?”
Mara grabbed his arm.
“Where is Elena?”
“With Eva.”
“No.”
They rushed outside.
Claire, Lena, Sophie, and Eva were standing near the vehicle.
Elena was gone.
Mara's phone vibrated.
A message.
DO NOT TRUST THE WOMAN YOU BROUGHT FROM THE HANGAR.
Mara looked at Eva.
“Where is your mother?”
Eva pointed toward the runway.
“She said she needed to get something.”
Mara looked.
A maintenance vehicle was moving away.
Someone sat in the passenger seat.
Dark hair.
Gray coat.
Elena.
Mara started running.
Daniel followed.
The vehicle accelerated toward the old hangar.
Then Mara noticed something else.
The aircraft's rear door was open.
A figure stood inside.
Thomas Vale.
He raised a hand.
Not waving.
Warning.
Mara stopped.
Thomas shouted across the runway.
“Don't let Eva board!”
The maintenance vehicle suddenly stopped.
Elena jumped out.
Thomas turned toward her.
And from somewhere beyond the hangar came the sharp sound of a gunshot.
Everyone froze.
Click Here to continue read next: PART8: The Final Recording Revealed Who Had Manipulated the Crash, and Mara Finally Understood Why Eva Had Been Sent Back to Her
The Argument in the Lakeside House Began With One Question Nobody Expected the Flight Attendant to Answer
Part 7 of 16
