The fires in the streets had burned low, but the anger still glowed hot as steel. Curfews were imposed. Checkpoints sprouted like weeds across Los Angeles. Every screen in the city replayed the courthouse bombing, the drone strike, the doctored “evidence.”

Jake was now the most wanted man in America.

Belle kept him hidden, moving him from safehouse to safehouse, her legal connections stretched thin. Every night she watched the news twist further, every morning she woke knowing the walls were closing in.

Then the knock came.

A federal envoy, flanked by silent soldiers, delivered the ultimatum:

“Jake must surrender to government custody. He will not be destroyed, he will be… contained. For national security.”

Belle’s hands shook as she read the order. “Contained,” she whispered. “A prisoner. He's done nothing wrong.”

Jake only nodded. His calm unsettled her more than fear would have. “It was always going to end this way.”

"You have until tomorrow, at noon. You must surrender or there will be consequences."

That night, Belle confronted him. “We can fight this. I’ll appeal. I’ll take it all the way to the Supreme Court.”

Jake shook his head. “The law bends slowly. But fear… fear is instant. They will not wait for the law to catch up.” His voice softened. “Belle, I could run. Leave the country. Disappear.”

She stared at him, heart twisting. “If you run, they’ll call you guilty. If you stay, they’ll cage you.”

Jake stepped closer, the faintest trace of something like sorrow in his eyes. “Then we are left with the choice.”

Belle felt the weight of it, heavier than any verdict she had ever delivered. This wasn’t a legal decision, it was human:

• Hide Jake forever, as a fugitive, denying the world the chance to confront what he represented.
• Surrender him, and let the government turn him into a prisoner, or worse, a prototype for weapons.
• Or… risk everything, go public with the conspiracy, expose Industrial Robot’s lies and the government’s corruption, even if it meant Jake’s destruction in the process.

Jake reached for her hand. His touch was warm, almost painfully human.

 “Belle. Whatever you decide… I choose to trust you.”

Her throat tightened. He had been on trial, but now she felt as though she was. The judge, the jury, the executioner, all in one.

Through the window, the city glowed under drones’ watchful eyes. Somewhere, the truth waited to be spoken. Somewhere, the lie sharpened its blade.

And Belle Garvey knew that when the sun rose, she would make the choice that would change not just Jake’s future... but humanity’s.

To be continued...

Copyright © Tom Kane September 2025

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