Chapter 6: The Secret Inside the Badge
For five seconds, Nia forgot how to breathe.
The airport disappeared.
The voices.
The footsteps.
The announcements.
Everything became distant.
Only one sentence remained.
Your father knew too.
Marcus noticed her expression.
“Nia?””
She did not answer.
Arthur looked confused.
“What does that mean?””
Nia forced herself back into the moment.
She reached for her radio.
“Control, trace the source of that broadcast.””
Static.
Then nothing.
That bothered her more.
A normal system would respond.
A normal system would confirm.
But silence meant someone was controlling the channel.
Marcus stepped closer.
“They know you.””
Nia looked at him.
“You know something about me?””
“No.””
His answer came immediately.
Too immediately.
She studied him.
“Then how did they know my father?””
Marcus looked toward the cameras.
“Because whoever did this has been watching everyone involved.””
Arthur looked at Nia.
“Your father?””
Nia hesitated.
She rarely talked about her family while working.
But the situation was no longer normal.
“My father worked security.””
Marcus’s expression changed.
“Where?””
Nia looked at him.
“At this airport.””
The silence that followed felt heavy.
Arthur looked at the terminal around them.
“You mean…”
Nia nodded slowly.
“He was here years ago.””
Marcus looked at the restricted gate.
“Before I disappeared.””
Nia felt a chill.
She had spent years believing her father’s stories were ordinary.
Late shifts.
Difficult passengers.
Security problems.
She never imagined those stories were connected to a missing soldier.
Marcus spoke quietly.
“Your father knew Rex.””
Nia looked at him.
“How?””
Marcus looked at the dog.
“Because he helped me escape.””
The words hit harder than she expected.
“My father?””
Marcus nodded.
“He was the only person inside the airport who believed me.””
Arthur stepped forward.
“Then why didn’t he tell anyone?””
Nia looked down.
Because she knew the answer.
Her father had always been careful.
Always cautious.
Always afraid of saying too much.
Marcus continued.
“He tried.””
Nia looked up.
“What happened?””
Marcus’s face darkened.
“He disappeared too.””
Her heart stopped.
“No.””
Marcus looked at her.
“I’m sorry.””
Nia shook her head.
“My father died five years ago.””
Marcus said nothing.
That silence hurt more than words.
Nia stepped closer.
“You’re saying my father was involved?””
“I’m saying your father was trying to expose the same people who erased me.””
A sound interrupted them.
A phone ringing.
Arthur looked down.
It was his phone.
The old man stared at the screen.
Unknown number.
Nobody spoke.
Finally, he answered.
“Arthur: Hello?””
At first, there was only breathing.
Then a voice.
A woman’s voice.
Arthur’s face changed.
Nia noticed immediately.
“Who is it?””
Arthur slowly lowered the phone.
His hands trembled.
“It’s impossible.””
Marcus grabbed his arm.
“Dad?””
Arthur looked at his son.
“She said she was there.””
“Who?””
Arthur looked toward the restricted gate.
“The night they told me you died.””
Nia felt the air leave the room.
“Who was on the phone?””
Arthur looked at the screen.
Then whispered:
“Your father’s partner.””
Nia froze.
“My father never had a partner.””
Arthur looked terrified.
“Yes, he did.””
The phone rang again.
This time, Nia answered.
She placed it on speaker.
A woman’s voice came through.
“Nia Carter.””
Nia stared ahead.
“Who is this?””
The woman took a breath.
“Someone who should have told you the truth years ago.””
Marcus stepped closer.
The woman continued.
“Your father did not die because of an accident.””
Nia’s face changed.
“What?””
“He died because he found out Marcus was alive.””
Arthur covered his mouth.
Marcus looked toward Nia.
The woman’s voice became quieter.
“And now that Rex has found him…”
A pause.
A long, terrifying pause.
“…they know all of us are still alive.””
The call ended.
Immediately.
No goodbye.
No explanation.
Just silence.
Then Rex moved.
The dog walked to Nia.
Not Marcus.
Not Arthur.
Nia.
He stared at her badge.
Then he looked toward the restricted gate.
Nia slowly removed her badge from her uniform.
There was something scratched into the back.
Something she had never noticed before.
A name.
Her father’s handwriting.
May you like
And beneath it, four words:
*“Trust the dog, Nia.””*
