The Black Ledger rested on the desk. It was still open, secrets exposed to the stale air. Outside, the jungle hissed with the sounds of the night. The distant insects chirped. The frogs called. The trees shifted and sighed. Inside, the three of them sat in low yellow light. Sawyer perched himself on the cot while Cormac leaned against the concrete wall near the door. Ashley sat at her desk with her knees drawn up. Her hair was damp from the humidity and her eyes were distant, probably lost in thought from the revelations they’ve just uncovered in their father’s old book.

  Sawyer broke the silence first. “We’re not going to get anywhere with half-truths and guesswork. Not with what we’re dealing with. If we’re going to do this…Project Black Ledger…we need to trust each other if we want any hope of taking down Harland Morrow and his demon stuffed globalist conglomerate.”

  Cormac looked at Ashley. “Seconded.”

  Ashley blinked slowly. “What do you want to know?”

  Sawyer leaned forward, elbows on his knees. “We have to know everything. Start with the beginning. How did you get involved with Harland? I want the whole story. When did this all begin?”

  Ashley was quiet for a moment, and Sawyer believed she would remain silent. But then she exhaled and nodded. “One year ago. That’s when it began. My first assignment out of the farm, I wasn’t anything special. I was just a junior operative. I was assigned to Panama. I was told we had dormant agency assets after the most recent reorganization and they needed fresh eyes and ears on the ground. At first it was fairly standard work and I followed normal trade craft. Observe, report, catalog any developments, build a network of agents. Develop them, then use them.”

  She glanced at her laptop.

  “Back then, nobody looked into Panama. The corporations involved had good reputations. They were mostly American and European. They were stable and compliant. But then things shifted. Harland Morrow started making moves. He facilitated massive acquisitions on behalf of BlackDiamond. That changed the game. My superiors flagged it. They told me to stay close. That was the first time I heard the term ‘golden share’ and I discovered they controlled operations in Panama.”

  Cormac frowned. “Meaning?’

  “Meaning, BlackDiamond has secured enough power to control the flow of goods, and people, through the Panama Canal. BlackDiamond has the majority share. They control everything. They’re also the largest conglomerate operating in the United States. They have a nine trillion dollar market cap with practically infinite leverage and resources.”

  Sawyer’s brow twitched. “How can we fight an organization more powerful than most governments?”

  Her voice was harder. “Their operations are global. Their motives are not merely national. They're not even rational. The more I researched them, the longer I infiltrated, the more I noticed patterns of foreign influence. I did as I learned in training and I followed the money.”

  Cormac adjusted his stance. “And?”

  Ashley tapped her fingers together. “That’s when I discovered Peace Not Borders. On paper, they’re a non-partisan charity. They are on a ‘noble mission’ to fund community building, defend marginalized voices, and empower youth coalitions across the globe. They use all the right buzzwords and they’re on every major college campus. When I cross referenced the financials, the little I could access, it was clear they were being controlled. They’re a shell. BlackDiamond indirectly funds Peace Not Borders through foreign subsidiaries. In turn, they sponsor and incite political protests across the United States and other major parts of the world. These protests involve looting, arson, theft, and targeted vandalism. It’s all designed. It’s manufactured rage.”

  “To do what?” Sawyer asked.

  “To create fear,” she said flatly. “Drive down the property values. Force local businesses to shutter. Scare families into moving. Then once the chaos is at its peak, BlackDiamond sweeps in and buys up the ruins for pennies on the dollar from their banking friends. They refurbish, rebrand, and flip entire districts into luxury developments with corporate tenant exclusivity clauses to house their corrupt friends.”

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  “Seriously?” Cormac muttered.

  “It’s worse than that,” Ashley said. “They use those properties for cult rituals, for disappearances, for things I haven’t even begun to uncover. They hide their worst crimes inside legitimate businesses who pay their mortgage to BlackDiamond. And do you know where a lot of that money flows through?”

  “The Panama Canal?” Sawyer said.

  “The Darién Gap?” Cormac said.

  Ashley nodded. “Both. It all comes full circle. BlackDiamond owns assets that wrap around the canal like a vine and they used fear and destruction to own whatever territory they needed to run their operations. And it’s not just about trade. There’s something here, under the surface of it all. My gut tells me that Panama is the key to understanding everything: the funding, the rituals, and the monsters involved in their globalist agenda.”

  Sawyer looked down at the Black Ledger again. “So your plan is to keep digging?”

  Ashley nodded. “Even if Harland is hunting me, even if I’m burned, I’m going to use this book to find the answers and reverse what he did to me. I’ll do whatever I have to to become human again. I won’t give up. I’m not a monster—”

  Her voice caught.

  For a moment she didn’t move and just stared straight ahead. Cormac watched her and then looked away respectfully. Sawyer said nothing, but he saw the trauma in her gaze as she relived a past experience.

  She took a deep breath. “Since we’re building trust like a bunch of schoolgirls, let me tell you something. Do you want to know what happened the night Harland turned me?”

  “Seems personal,” Cormac said.

  Sawyer’s eyes met hers. “I want to know.”

  She swallowed. “I’d spent three weeks planning an infiltration. I managed to join his organization as an advisor and a weapons dealer. It was a weak cover, but it worked. I sold him weapons and before long he gave me the greenlight. I infiltrated one of his offices. It was supposed to be a clean sweep. I plugged in the data tap and cloned his laptop, but before I could get out one of his militia grabbed me.”

  Her hands curled into fists.

  “When Harland came into the room, he didn’t yell at me. He didn’t even look angry really. He just stepped out of the shadows and he smiled. Then he pressed his lips to my neck. That’s when he…I don’t remember much after that, or really, I don’t like to remember it. When I woke up, I was strapped into a stone coffin and I was transforming.”

  She looked down at the floor.

  “I was naked. I was chained at the wrists and ankles. There was no light, just the sound of dripping water. It was cold and I screamed. I begged them. I told them to kill me. I wanted to die.”

  Cormac exhaled.

  “After hours…maybe a day…I don’t know…he came back at some point. He said I was hungry. And I was. I really was. He said I would understand once I felt it. Someone came into the room, they removed my straps. And then Harland shoved someone toward me.”

  She blinked hard and tears formed in the corner of her eyes.

  “He was just a kid. Maybe twenty-four. He had a new suit and looked like some Ivy League grad they’d hired. Some lawyer, they said. He had no idea what was happening. They probably told him it was orientation or something stupid. He looked so scared when he saw me.”

  She clenched her jaw. “I didn’t even hesitate. I tore into him. He screamed and he begged. And I didn’t care. I drank until he stopped moving and until he was dry. I drank until his heart stopped. I couldn’t stop. I didn’t want to stop. In fact, I liked it.”

  She wiped a tear from her cheek.

  “It wasn’t your fault,” Sawyer said.

  “Yes it was,” she said. “I made the decision to investigate Harland. I made the decision to drain that kid's blood and kill him. I didn’t have to, but the hunger was real. I didn’t have to enjoy it, but I did.”

  The room fell silent again.

  She looked at both of them. “That’s why I have to end this. I don’t just want revenge. I need redemption. I need to tear Harland’s empire down brick by brick and find a way to undo what he did to me.”

  “Then we start here,” Cormac said. “With the Black Ledger.”

  Sawyer nodded. “And we don’t stop until they all burn.”

  Ashley took a breath. She steeled herself and wiped her eyes.