Seven years.
Seven years of believing I had lost someone.
But Ethan wasn’t dead.
He had been stolen.
The door suddenly opened.
Not fully.
Just enough for a man to step inside.
He wore a dark coat.
His hair was graying.
But his eyes were exactly the same.
Cold.
Calculating.
Captain Daniel Ward.
He looked around the clinic.
Then smiled.
“Madison Cole.””
I didn’t move.
“You’re alive.””
His smile widened.
“That’s a strange thing to say to someone who was never supposed to find you.””
Ghost stepped in front of me.
Ward looked down at him.
For the first time, his confidence disappeared.
“You.””
The word came out almost like fear.
Ghost bared his teeth.
Ward took one step back.
“You should have died with him.””
The room went silent.
My heart stopped.
“With who?””
Ward looked at me.
And then he said the one thing I had spent seven years wishing I could hear.
“Ethan.””
I stepped forward.
“Where is he?””
Ward smiled.
“You really think I’m going to tell you?””
Hayes moved beside me.
“Daniel.””
Ward glanced at him.
“Commander Hayes.””
His smile faded.
“I wondered when you would finally stop hiding behind her.””
Hayes’ fists tightened.
“You destroyed his life.””
Ward laughed.
“No.””
He looked at Ghost.
“Ethan destroyed his own life when he refused to follow orders.””
Rachel stepped forward.
“You’re lying.””
Ward looked at her.
“You should know better than anyone.””
The tension became unbearable.
I looked at Ward.
“What did Ethan discover?””
Ward’s expression changed.
For a moment, something like respect appeared.
Then it disappeared.
“He discovered that the military creates weapons.””
I looked at Ghost.
“He discovered that we weren’t just training dogs.””
Rachel whispered.
“Daniel…”
Ward ignored her.
“We were creating soldiers who never questioned commands.””
My stomach twisted.
“That’s impossible.””
“Is it?””
He looked at Ghost.
“Look at him.””
Ghost’s body stiffened.
“He was the perfect result.””
“No.””
My voice was firm.
“He was a dog who served his country.””
Ward smiled.
“That’s what Ethan believed too.””
The way he said Ethan’s name made me angry.
“What did you do to him?””
Ward didn’t answer.
Instead, he reached into his coat.
Hayes immediately moved.
But Ward only pulled out a small device.
A recording.
He pressed a button.
Static filled the room.
Then a voice.
A voice I hadn’t heard in seven years.
A voice that made my entire world stop.
“Madison…”
I grabbed the counter to stay standing.
Because it was him.
Ethan.
Older.
Tired.
But alive.
“If you’re hearing this…”
The recording crackled.
“…it means Ghost found you.””
Tears blurred my vision.
Ward watched me carefully.
The recording continued.
“Don’t trust anyone who tells you I died.””
My breath caught.
“Especially the person holding this message.””
The audio cut.
Silence.
Then Ward smiled.
“Now you understand.””
I stared at him.
“You had him.””
“Yes.””
“Where is he?””
Ward stepped closer.
But Ghost immediately blocked him.
For the first time, Ward looked afraid.
Then he whispered:
“Ask Ghost.””
I frowned.
“What?””
Ward looked at the dog.
“He’s the only one who knows where Ethan hid the final evidence.””
My heart pounded.
“What evidence?””
Ward smiled.
“The evidence that can destroy everyone involved.””
Then he turned toward the door.
Hayes moved.
“You’re not leaving.””
Ward stopped.
Without turning around, he said:
“You have three days.””
“For what?””
Ward looked back at me.
“To find Ethan.””
My blood ran cold.
“Or?””
His expression hardened.
“You’ll find out why Ethan made Ghost forget.””
The door closed behind him.
No one moved.
Not even Ghost.
Then the old military tag in my hand suddenly began to vibrate.
I looked down.
A tiny piece of metal had slid open.
Hidden inside was a message.
Four words.
Four words written in Ethan’s handwriting.
*DON’T TRUST THE DOG.*
For a moment, I forgot how to breathe.
The message was impossible.
Ethan had trusted Ghost more than anyone.
More than himself.
More than the people around him.
I remembered watching them together in Afghanistan. Ghost wasn’t just a military K9. He was Ethan’s shadow.
His partner. His family.
So why would Ethan warn me?
Why would he tell me not to trust the one creature who had spent seven years carrying his memory?
“Madison?””
Rachel’s voice sounded distant.
I didn’t look up.
“No.””
The word came out quietly.
Everyone stared at me.
“No, that doesn’t make sense.””
Commander Hayes stepped closer.
“What did it say?””
I closed my hand around the tag.
“Nothing.””
His eyes narrowed.
“You’re lying.””
I looked at him sharply.
“That’s ironic coming from you.””
The words hit harder than I intended.
Hayes looked away.
Because he knew I was right.
Rachel moved toward me.
“Madison, whatever Ethan wrote, you need to show us.””
I laughed bitterly.
“Why?””
She froze.
“Because we’re all here trying to find him?””
“No.””
I looked around the room.
“You’re all here because Ethan knew something dangerous.””
The silence confirmed it.
I continued.
“And somehow, every single person connected to him has a secret.””
My eyes landed on Ghost.
Even the dog seemed to understand the tension.
“He trusted this dog.””
Rachel nodded.
“Yes.””
“But he told me not to.””
Neither of them spoke.
That scared me.
“Did you know about this?””
I looked at Rachel.
Her face changed.
Only slightly.
But enough.
“You knew.””
She lowered her eyes.
“I knew Ethan left warnings.””
“What kind of warnings?””
“Ones that weren’t meant to make sense until the right person found them.””
I stared.
“That sounds convenient.””
Rachel sighed.
“You don’t understand how paranoid Ethan became.””
“Paranoid?””
I shook my head.
“No. Ethan was careful.””
I remembered him.
The way he checked exits.
The way he memorized faces.
The way he always noticed things everyone else missed.
“He wasn’t paranoid.””
I looked at the tag.
“He was afraid.””
A heavy silence followed.
Commander Hayes walked to the window and looked outside.
“He changed after the explosion.””
I looked at him.
“What do you mean?””
“Before, Ethan trusted people.””
Hayes’ voice was low.
“Afterward, he trusted almost nobody.””
“Except Ghost.””
Hayes nodded.
“Especially Ghost.””
That made the message even more confusing.
I looked at the dog.
Ghost was sitting near the door.
Waiting.
Watching.
Like he had been trained to do his entire life.
“What happened to him after Ethan disappeared?””
Hayes didn’t answer.
Rachel did.
“He was missing for eleven months.””
My head turned.
“Missing?””
“Yes.””
“The military said he died.””
“They said a lot of things.””
Anger rose in my chest.
“So where was he?””
Rachel looked at Ghost.
“Searching.””
The answer sounded impossible.
“For Ethan?””
“Yes.””
I swallowed.
A dog had searched for a missing soldier.
For almost a year.
“That’s why you brought him here.””
Rachel nodded.
“Ghost was found after someone tried to remove him from the program.””