I barely slept that night.

My  mind was a storm, thoughts crashing against each other in a chaotic swirl. The image of the paper—Project 2734—kept flashing in my mind, its stark black ink seared into my brain. I  could still hear the echo of Chase's voice, tinged with something between warning and concern.

"If that's what I think it is... you're not going to drop it."

I didn't care. Not anymore. I couldn't.

The paper I stole from Commander's desk was more than just a list of codes and cryptic project titles. It was a key to something bigger—something darker. The mention of "Team REK" was enough to make my skin crawl. I knew the Commander wasn't a simple man, but now the pieces were starting to fall into place. If I didn't find out what this project was, I might never get another chance.

My stomach twisted with the weight of my decision as I lay on my bed, staring at the ceiling. The silence of the dorm was suffocating, the stillness pressing in on me as if the very air itself were alive with the tension of what was coming.

A soft knock on the door pulled me from my thoughts.

"Aliana?" It was Jake, his voice muffled through the doorway. He sounded hesitant, like he wasn't sure if he was allowed to enter.

"Come in," I said, my voice flat.

The door creaked open, and Jake stepped inside, a faint smile on his face. But it didn't reach his eyes, and I could tell something was off. His normally relaxed demeanor was stiff, his usual confidence replaced by an underlying tension.

"You okay?" he asked, standing at the door with his arms crossed.

I sat up, rubbing my eyes. I hadn't told Jake about what happened after I left him hanging earlier that day. It felt like a betrayal to not explain the danger everyone might be in, but part of me feared what he'd say. What he'd think. How he would react.

I think I really needed to do this alone.

"I'm fine," I lied, though I could hear the shakiness in my own voice.

Jake didn't buy it. He stepped closer, his brow furrowing as he sat on the edge of my bed. "I don't know, Allie. Something's off. You've been... different."

I swallowed, my fingers curling around the fabric of my jeans. I couldn't tell him what I had learned. Not yet. I wasn't sure I even understood it myself. But the nagging feeling that something was terribly wrong with the Commander and Ground Zero kept driving me insane.

I should have known all along. I think a part of me did.

"I'm just tired," I said, trying to muster the smallest semblance of a smile. "You know how it is."

Jake gave me a skeptical look but nodded. He was never one to push it. "Alright. But don't shut me out. We're in this together, you know?"

I met his eyes, and for a fleeting second, I felt something—something warm, something comforting. But it quickly vanished as reality set back in. No one was really "together" in this broken world. Everyone had their own battles, their own fears. And right now, mine was much bigger than Jake could ever understand. Could Ground Zero be even more dangerous than the outside world? Are we in the lion's den? Or am I just overthinking it?

"Yeah," I whispered, though I wasn't sure if I was talking to him or to myself.

Jake stood up, giving me a lingering look. "If you need me, you know where to find me."

When the door clicked shut behind him, I was left alone again. But I wasn't alone in my thoughts. The secrets I uncovered weren't going to stay buried. They couldn't.

~~~~~~~~

The next morning, I stood in front of the small desk in my room, my fingers shaking as I unfolded the crumpled paper. I glanced nervously at the door, as if expecting someone to walk in on me. But the room was empty, and the silence pressed down on me once again.

The bolded words PROJECT 2734 - Team REK still haunted me, and I traced my fingers along the paper, searching for any detail that might offer more insight. But it was a cryptic mess of gibberish words seeming like military codes, coordinates, and technical terms I didn't understand. That didn't matter. It was the last line that had my heart racing.

"Execute on command. Activation is imminent."

What did that mean? Was this project connected to the "plan" the Commander had mentioned? And what role did my family play in it?

There was no time to waste. I needed answers, fast. I had no choice but to go deeper into this. No choice but to trust the fragments of information I had and use them to my advantage.

If only Chase wasn't such a dick and actually helped me...

I folded the paper again, stuffing it into my pocket. My first step was to figure out what "Team REK" meant. The people involved. Who was working on it? And why was it so important that the Commander had kept it hidden?

"Aliana?"

The voice was familiar, and it made my heart skip a beat for some unfathomable reason. I turned to find Chase standing in the hallway, his expression unreadable. He was dressed in his usual black tactical gear, looking like he belonged in the shadows rather than in a room like this.

"What do you want, Chase?" I asked, my voice colder than intended.

He stepped closer to me, his gaze flicking to the paper I had hastily shoved into my pocket and at the camera that thankfully wasn't pointing at our direction.

"I should've known you wouldn't just walk away from this," he said, his tone tinged with both irritation and something else—something like concern. "You've been digging, haven't you? And you're not going to stop?"

I narrowed her eyes. "I don't need your help."

Even though I actually really really did.

Me and my stubbornness would be the end of me.

Chase smiled, but it wasn't kind. "You don't have a choice. You're in over your head, Aliana. And you're about to make a mistake."

My chest tightened at his words. "What do you mean?"

"You really think you're the only one who's been watching the Commander? There are things happening at Ground Zero you don't understand. Things that go deeper than you know. And Project 2734?" He shook his head. "You don't want to know what that is."

It led me to believe that he was just like me. That both of us wanted and sought for answers.

I stepped closer, my heart pounding. "Then tell me."

Chase's eyes darkened. "I can't. But I can warn you. If you keep digging, you'll find yourself buried in something much worse than you can imagine. There are people out there who want to make sure you don't find out. People who will do anything to keep those secrets safe."

As he talked his gaze softened for a moment, and for the first time, I saw a flicker of something real in his eyes. "Just be careful, Aliana. You're not as alone as you think you are."

He turned and left without another word, leaving me standing there, more uncertain than ever. But there was one thing I knew for sure: I was going to find the truth. No matter the cost and no matter if I was doing it all by myself.