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Chapter 3 - The Safe House in AnnapolisBy 6:00 p.m., the federal SUV pulled into the driveway of a secluded safe house surrounded by dense oak trees outside Annapolis.

Inside, a medical team evaluated Maya, ensuring her blood pressure stabilized and her unborn baby was safe.

Agent Reed set the black leather suitcase onto a metal table under bright halogen lights, using a tactical knife to pry open the double-locked steel zippers.

Inside the main compartment were stacks of financial ledgers, three encrypted hard drives, and a plastic bag containing a pair of bloody work gloves—deliberately planted to frame Maya if the suitcase was ever seized by local authorities.

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“Travis planted your name on the luggage tag so that if the federal wiretap triggered, the investigation would point straight to you as an accomplice,” Reed explained, adjusting his glasses. “He wanted Noah dead and you in prison.”

Maya stared at the encrypted hard drive, her tears turning into fierce, unshakeable determination. “Noah didn't give me a burner phone just to protect me, Agent Reed. He left a passcode.”

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