The man obeyed calmly.
"I didn't come to do harm," he says in a hoarse voice. "I had no choice."
Hannah got out of the vehicle before Pike could stop her.
« Matt… ? »
The man stepped forward. Time had marked his face, but it left no doubt.
Matthew Cross was alive.
"I'm not dead," he says. "We needed the world to believe it."
The shock was brutal. But the truth was just beginning.
Matthew explained what had been covered up: a mission, civilians in danger, an impossible decision. He had disobeyed to save lives — including his own son's. For that, he had been erased. Administratively, silently.
And now, those who orchestrated this lie wanted to make sure it remained buried.
Pike immediately understood the gravity of the situation. It wasn't just a personal matter.
It was a sensitive issue.
And potentially dangerous.
