CHAPTER 9 — THE FOUNDER
The monitors screamed.
Doctors rushed around Ethan Mercer's bed.
"He's crashing!"
"Blood pressure falling!"
"Charge to 200!"
Harrison stood frozen near the wall as medical staff fought to keep the former CFO alive.
Seconds stretched into eternity.
A nurse pushed him toward the door.
"Sir, you need to leave."
Harrison didn't argue.
He stepped into the hallway.
The doors closed.
And all he could do was wait.
Again.
Just as he had outside Khloe's operating room.
Just as he had waited for Evelyn to survive.
Waiting had become the hardest part of his life.
Twenty-seven minutes later, a physician emerged.
The exhaustion on his face said everything.
Harrison stood immediately.
"Did he make it?"
The doctor hesitated.
"Barely."
Relief washed through Harrison.
"But he won't survive another episode."
"Can he speak?"
"For a few minutes."
"No more."
When Harrison reentered the room, Ethan looked weaker than before.
His skin had turned almost gray.
Yet his eyes remained clear.
"You don't have much time," Harrison said.
Ethan laughed softly.
"Neither do I."
The room fell silent.
Then Harrison asked the question again.
"Who is The Founder?"
Ethan stared at the ceiling.
For a long moment, Harrison wondered whether he would answer at all.
Finally, Ethan whispered,
"The Founder isn't a person."
Harrison frowned.
"What?"
"It's a title."
"Given to whoever controls Project Haven."
Confusion spread across Harrison's face.
Ethan struggled to continue.
"Every generation chooses a successor."
"Hidden ownership."
"Hidden power."
"Hidden wealth."
He coughed violently.
Blood stained the corner of his mouth.
"Edward inherited it."
"From whom?"
"I don't know."
"Nobody ever knew."
Harrison leaned forward.
"What does Project Haven actually do?"
Ethan closed his eyes.
"It keeps secrets."
Across Philadelphia, Richard sat inside his mother's mansion.
Eleanor Harrington had finally decided to tell him the truth.
Or part of it.
The fireplace crackled softly between them.
Outside, rain tapped against the windows.
Richard felt like a child again.
Confused.
Uncertain.
Desperate for answers.
"You said my father disappeared."
Eleanor nodded.
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because he became afraid."
Richard stared at her.
"Afraid of what?"
For the first time in his life, his mother looked frightened.
"Not what."
"Who."
A chill ran through him.
"My father feared someone?"
"Your father feared everyone connected to Project Haven."
Richard shook his head.
"That's impossible."
"No."
Eleanor looked away.
"The impossible part is that he waited so long."
She opened an old wooden box resting beside her chair.
Inside were dozens of photographs.
One picture immediately caught Richard's attention.
A younger Edward Harrington stood beside several men.
Executives.
Politicians.
Judges.
One face had been carefully scratched out.
Richard held up the photo.
"Who is this?"
Eleanor's voice trembled.
"The first Founder I ever met."
Meanwhile, Vanessa Kensington packed frantically.
The anonymous threat still haunted her.
Every shadow seemed dangerous.
Every sound outside her apartment made her jump.
Her phone suddenly rang.
Unknown number.
She almost ignored it.
Almost.
"Hello?"
A calm male voice answered.
"Ms. Kensington."
"Who is this?"
"Someone trying to save your life."
Her blood ran cold.
"What do you want?"
"You've become a liability."
The voice remained emotionless.
"The people behind Project Haven know investigators are getting closer."
Vanessa's legs weakened.
"Who are you?"
"Listen carefully."
The man ignored the question.
"If you stay in Philadelphia..."
"...you'll disappear just like Thomas Gallagher."
The line went dead.
Vanessa stared at the phone.
Thomas Gallagher.
The missing witness.
Whoever called clearly knew things the public didn't.
For the first time, she realized she wasn't merely facing criminal charges.
She was caught inside something much larger.
And much deadlier.
At midnight, Harrison and Daniel Ross arrived at the hidden maintenance tunnel beneath the old mill.
Flashlights illuminated rusted tracks stretching into darkness.
The air smelled of damp concrete and decay.
Daniel checked his watch.
"No guards."
"Good."
They moved deeper underground.
Hundreds of feet passed.
Then Daniel stopped suddenly.
"What is it?"
He pointed ahead.
Fresh footprints.
Several sets.
Recent.
Very recent.
Someone else had entered the tunnel.
And not long ago.
The two men continued cautiously.
The tunnel eventually opened into a massive underground chamber.
Rows of servers stretched into the darkness.
Climate-controlled vaults lined the walls.
Thousands of filing cabinets stood beneath bright industrial lights.
Project Haven.
At last.
Harrison walked slowly through the room.
Each cabinet bore a year.
Decades of records.
Daniel opened one drawer.
Inside were files.
Thousands of them.
Powerful names.
Corporations.
Governors.
Judges.
Senators.
Billionaires.
Blackmail.
Corruption.
Secret settlements.
Hidden scandals.
Evidence.
Enough to destroy careers across the country.
Daniel stared in disbelief.
"My God."
Harrison finally understood.
Project Haven wasn't about money.
Money was secondary.
Project Haven collected leverage.
Control.
Power.
Secrets.
It was a private archive capable of influencing governments and corporations alike.
Then a voice echoed from the darkness.
"I was wondering who would find it first."
Both men spun around.
A figure emerged from between the server rows.
An elderly man.
Silver hair.
Sharp eyes.
Perfect posture.
Harrison recognized him instantly.
Edward Harrington.
Alive.
Very much alive.
The man smiled sadly.
"You look exactly like your father."
Harrison froze.
"My father?"
Edward nodded.
"James Cole."
The name hit Harrison like a gunshot.
His father had died twenty-five years ago.
A small-town accountant.
A decent man.
A forgotten man.
At least that's what Harrison had always believed.
Edward's smile disappeared.
"No."
"He wasn't forgotten."
"He was murdered."
The underground chamber fell silent.
May you like
And for the first time since this nightmare began...
The investigation became personal.
