CHAPTER 42 — TWELVE MISSING YEARS
Ward transported the group to an underground federal safehouse.
No one was allowed to leave.
Daniel sat alone while Rebecca examined his DNA against the dead man’s.
Claire watched through the glass.
Lily slept beside her.
Rose paced the room.
“You cannot keep me locked in here.”
Ward stood near the door.
“Until we know who has been compromised, no one leaves.”
Sarah was handcuffed to a metal chair.
“You are already compromised.”
Ward ignored her.
Rebecca entered carrying the results.
“The two Daniels are genetically identical.”
“Twins?” Claire asked.
“No. Their cellular ages are different, but their DNA contains the same artificial markers.”
Daniel looked at her.
“Which one is older?”
Rebecca hesitated.
“The dead man.”
Daniel lowered his eyes.
Sarah leaned forward.
“Gray Tide created developmental duplicates. One child was raised openly. The other was kept in reserve.”
Daniel looked at Margaret.
“Did you know?”
Margaret shook her head.
“But Miriam did.”
Rebecca placed an old dental scan on the screen.
“We found this image in Daniel’s hospital history. It shows adult teeth forming when he was supposedly four years old.”
Ward frowned.
“That is impossible.”
“It means his recorded age was false.”
Daniel pressed his hands against his temples.
“I remember a house near the ocean.”
Sarah’s expression sharpened.
“What color was the door?”
“Red.”
“Was there a bell hanging beside it?”
Daniel stared at her.
“Yes.”
Sarah whispered, “Blackwater Station.”
Daniel stood.
“I have never been there.”
“You were raised there,” Sarah said. “So was I.”
The safehouse lights flickered.
Lily woke suddenly.
“Mommy, someone is in the wall.”
Mason drew his gun.
A scraping sound moved behind the ventilation grate.
Cole removed the cover.
A small camera stared back at them.
May you like
Then a child’s voice came through the vent.
“Daniel, your twelve missing years are ready to be returned.”
