His father.
Daniel slowly placed his hand on the scanner.
Nothing happened.
Then the screen changed.
IDENTITY CONFIRMED.
Claire inhaled sharply.
A hidden door opened in the wall.
Beyond it was a narrow staircase descending into darkness.
Robert stared.
"That wasn't on the blueprint."
Daniel stepped forward.
"No."
"Then where does it go?"
Daniel looked down.
"Wherever my father wanted it to."
They descended.
The staircase seemed to go much deeper than the airport itself should have allowed.
One level.
Two.
Three.
The air became colder.
The sounds of the terminal disappeared completely.
There was only the echo of their footsteps.
After several minutes, they reached a landing.
A metal door stood ahead.
This one had a small glass window.
Beyond it was a room filled with old computer equipment.
But unlike the abandoned office above, these machines were running.
Green lights blinked.
Cooling fans hummed.
A monitor displayed a live feed of the airport.
Another showed passenger records.
Another displayed security camera footage.
Daniel stopped.
"How old is this system?"
Robert looked around.
"Some of this hardware is at least fifteen years old."
"Still operational."
"Apparently."
Claire whispered:
"Someone has been maintaining it."
Daniel nodded.
"Yes."
He stepped inside.
On the central desk sat an old black telephone.
Next to it was a handwritten note.
Daniel picked it up.
His father's handwriting.
He recognized it immediately.
Daniel, if you've made it this far, I'm sorry.
Daniel's fingers tightened around the paper.
He continued reading.
I hoped you would never have to see this room.
If you're here, then the system above has been compromised.
And if the system has been compromised, it means the people I feared have finally succeeded.
Daniel swallowed.
Robert looked at him.
"Keep reading."
Daniel did.
There are things I never told you because telling you would have made you a target.
I need you to understand one thing before anything else.
I did not abandon you.
Daniel stopped.
His eyes blurred.
He had spent sixteen years carrying that wound.
His father had left.
His father had disappeared.
His father had chosen work over family.
At least, that was the story Daniel had eventually forced himself to accept.
But now those words were sitting in front of him.
I did not abandon you.
Daniel closed his eyes.
Claire quietly looked away.
Robert gave him a moment.
Then Daniel continued.
When I realized what they were building, I tried to stop it.
They told me I was paranoid.
They told me the system was harmless.
They told me identity manipulation would only be used in emergencies.
Daniel's jaw tightened.
He knew where this was going.
They lied.
The next page contained a list.
Names.
Companies.
Government departments.
Airline executives.
Technology contractors.
Daniel recognized some of them.
Others were unfamiliar.
But one name appeared repeatedly.
Richard Voss.
Daniel stared.
Robert noticed.
"Elena's father."
Daniel nodded.
Thomas had worked with Richard Voss.
For years.
The photograph upstairs had shown them standing side by side.
But the next page changed everything.
Richard Voss did not create the system.
He learned how to control it.
Daniel read the sentence again.
Then:
And he wasn't alone.
A second name appeared.
Daniel Cross.
Daniel froze.
"What?"
Robert leaned over.
"Your name?"
Daniel looked at the document.
His father's handwriting continued.
If they ever use your identity, do not assume they chose you because of your position.
They chose you because you are the only person who can activate the original safeguard.
Daniel looked up.
"The safeguard."
Claire stepped closer.
"What safeguard?"
Daniel shook his head.
"I don't know."
He turned the page.
The next paragraph was shorter.
Your identity was created as a key.
Daniel's face went pale.
Robert stared.
"Created?"
Daniel nodded.
"That's what the system said."
Claire whispered:
"So your identity wasn't stolen."
Daniel looked at her.
"No."
"It was designed."
Daniel nodded.
"For this."
Suddenly, one of the monitors changed.
The airport security feed disappeared.
A live camera appeared.
It showed Counter 17.
Claire stared.
The counter was empty.
The torn pieces of Daniel's ticket were still sitting on the desk.
Then someone entered the frame.
A man.
Tall.
Dark jacket.
He walked to the counter and picked up the pieces of paper.
Daniel watched closely.
The man turned toward the camera.
His face was visible.
Daniel stopped breathing.
It was him.
Not similar.
Not close.
Him.
The same face.
The same eyes.
The same scar.
The same expression.
Robert stepped backward.
"What the hell?"
Claire whispered:
"That's the man from the old photograph."
Daniel nodded.
The man on the screen looked directly into the camera.
Then smiled.
He raised one of the torn ticket pieces.
And held it toward the lens.
Daniel's phone vibrated.
A message appeared.
YOU SHOULD HAVE STAYED AT THE COUNTER.
Daniel stared at the screen.
Another message appeared.
YOU WOULD HAVE BEEN SAFER.
Then:
NOW YOU KNOW TOO MUCH.
Robert looked at him.
"Can we trace it?"
Daniel shook his head.
"Not yet."
The monitor flickered.
The man disappeared.
The camera returned to the empty counter.
Then every monitor in the room displayed the same message.
PHASE TWO — SUBJECT LOCATED
Daniel looked around.
"Someone knows we're here."
Robert pulled out his radio.
"We need security."
Daniel stopped him.
"Not yet."
"Why?"
"Because if they wanted us dead, they wouldn't have shown us the room."
Claire looked at him.
"Then what do they want?"
Daniel stared at his father's note.
"They want me to find something."
He walked toward the largest monitor.
"What?"
Daniel looked at the system.
"My father."
At 10:48 a.m., Elena Voss was sitting in her office when her computer suddenly went black.
She frowned.
She tried to restart it.
Nothing.
Then the screen came alive.
A single message appeared.
YOUR FATHER WAS RIGHT.
Elena froze.
Her father had been dead for eight years.
She had spent her entire career trying to separate herself from his reputation.
Richard Voss had been brilliant.
Influential.
Respected.
And, according to the official records, one of the architects of the airport's modern security infrastructure.
He had also been the man who taught Elena never to trust a computer completely.
She had always thought it was an eccentric warning.
Now she wasn't so sure.
Another message appeared.
ASK DANIEL CROSS ABOUT 2009.
Elena stared.
She picked up her phone.
She called Daniel.
No answer.
Again.
Nothing.
Then she received a call from an unknown number.
She answered.
"Hello?"
A man's voice said:
"Do you know where Daniel is?"
Elena stood.
"Who is this?"
"Someone who wants you to understand what's happening."
"Where is he?"
"Below Gate 41." Her blood ran cold. "How do you know?" "I know everything happening inside that airport." "Who are you?" The man ignored the question. "Your father left something for you." Elena's breathing stopped. "What?" "A message." "What message?" The voice became quieter. "He said that when Daniel Cross finally came looking for answers, you were supposed to help him." Elena sat down. "My father knew Daniel?" "Your father knew his father." "Thomas Cross?" "Yes." Elena closed her eyes. "What's happening?" "You already know." "No, I don't." "You just don't want to believe it." The call ended. Elena immediately stood. She grabbed her coat. Then stopped. On her desk was an old photograph of her father. She had kept it for years. She turned it over. There was handwriting on the back. She had never noticed it before. WHEN THE BOY RETURNS, HELP HIM FIND THE TRUTH. Elena stared. "The boy." Daniel. She picked up her phone again. This time, she called Robert. He answered immediately. "Where are you?" "Operations." "Is Daniel with you?" "No." "Then where is he?" Robert hesitated. "Gate 41." Elena's expression changed. "Listen to me." "What?" "Don't let him leave." Robert frowned. "Why?" "Because I think I know what Phase Two is." Robert waited. Elena whispered: "Daniel's identity isn't the key." "Then what is?" "His memory." Below Gate 41, Daniel was standing in front of an old computer. A question had appeared on the screen. WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER ABOUT THE NIGHT YOUR FATHER DISAPPEARED? Daniel stared. He remembered the rain. His father's blue jacket. The kitchen light. A suitcase. His father saying: "Don't open the door for anyone." Daniel had been sixteen. He remembered asking: "Where are you going?" His father had smiled. "I have to fix something." Daniel had asked: "Will you come back?" Thomas had hesitated. Then said: "Always." But he never did. Daniel typed the memory into the system. The screen remained blank. Then: INCOMPLETE. Daniel frowned. "What did I forget?" Robert looked at him. "Maybe something important happened that night." "I was sixteen." "Think." Daniel closed his eyes. The rain. The kitchen. The suitcase. His father's voice. Then something else. A sound. A car door. Someone outside. Daniel opened his eyes. "I wasn't alone." Claire looked at him. "What?" "My father wasn't the only person who left that night." He stared at the screen. "There was another car." Robert frowned. "Whose?" "I don't know." Daniel searched his memory. Then he remembered a reflection in the kitchen window. A man standing beneath an umbrella. Watching the house. Daniel whispered: "Richard Voss." The system beeped. MEMORY VERIFIED. Robert stared. "How can a computer verify a memory?" Daniel looked at the screen. "Maybe it can't." "What then?" Daniel pointed. A new video appeared. Security footage. Sixteen years earlier. A house. Daniel's childhood home. Rain falling heavily. The camera angle was from across the street. Thomas Cross walked out. Richard Voss stood beside a black car. They spoke for several minutes. Then Thomas handed him a small case. Richard opened it. Inside was a black storage device. The same type Daniel had found beneath Gate 41. Daniel stared. His father had given Richard Voss the system. But why? The video continued. Thomas turned toward the house. For one brief moment, he looked directly at the camera. Then he looked toward the upstairs window. Daniel watched his younger self standing there. His father raised one hand. Not a wave. A signal. Daniel remembered. He had seen it that night. But he hadn't understood it. Now he did. His father had been telling him to remember. The screen displayed: MEMORY COMPLETE. Then: SAFEGUARD AVAILABLE. Daniel looked at Robert. "What does that mean?" The system opened another file. ORIGINAL SAFEGUARD — CROSS PROTOCOL Daniel's name appeared. Then another name. RICHARD VOSS Then another. ELENA VOSS Daniel stared. "Elena." Robert looked at him. "Why is she here?" Daniel shook his head. "I don't know." The system displayed a final instruction. TWO AUTHORIZATIONS REQUIRED. DANIEL CROSS. ELENA VOSS. Claire whispered: "So you can't activate it alone." "No." "And neither can Elena." Daniel nodded. "Which means my father planned for both of us." Robert looked toward the door. "Then we need to find her." Daniel turned. "No." Robert frowned. "Why?" "Because if the people behind Project Mirror know the safeguard requires both of us..." He looked at the screen. "...they'll already be looking for Elena." At that exact moment, Elena stepped into the elevator. She pressed the button for Level 4. The doors closed. She looked at her reflection. For a moment, she saw her father's face. Then the lights flickered. The elevator stopped. Elena pressed the emergency button. Nothing. A voice came through the speaker. "Elena." She froze. "Who is this?" "Someone who knew your father." "What do you want?" "The same thing your father wanted." "Which is?" "To finish what he started." Elena swallowed. "What did he start?" The voice answered: "Saving Daniel Cross." The elevator lights went out. Then the speaker whispered: "But you're already too late." The doors opened. Elena stepped into darkness. Below Gate 41, Daniel's screen suddenly changed. ELENA VOSS — LOCATION UNKNOWN Daniel stared. "She's gone." Robert immediately reached for his radio. "Security?" Daniel stopped him. "No." "Again?" Daniel shook his head. "We can't trust the security network." "Then what?" Daniel looked at the old map. There was one place not connected to the airport's current systems. The original executive archive. Built before the airport's modernization. Daniel pointed to it. "She's there." Robert looked at the map. "How do you know?" Daniel picked up the black drive. "My father." Claire stared. "Your father left directions?" Daniel nodded. "He knew this day would come." He looked at the screen. The final message had appeared. PHASE TWO COMPLETE. Then: PHASE THREE — REUNION Daniel's face hardened. "Let's go." Robert asked: "Where?" Daniel looked toward the old service tunnel. "To find Elena." "And if someone is waiting?" Daniel picked up the old access card. "Then this time..." He looked at the security camera. "...they can wait for us." As they left the room, one final monitor remained active. The same man who looked exactly like Daniel appeared on the screen. He watched them disappear into the tunnel. Then he turned toward someone standing beside him. A woman. Her face was hidden in shadow. The man asked: "Should we stop them?" The woman shook her head. "No." "Why?" She stepped into the light. It was Elena Voss. But not the Elena they knew. She smiled. "Let Daniel find his father." The man looked confused. "He's alive?" Elena's smile disappeared. "Not anymore." She pressed a button. The screen went black. And somewhere beneath the airport, a machine began counting down. 05:00:00 04:59:59 04:59:58 The final phase had begun. Daniel Cross ran. He had never considered himself a particularly fast man. His work had always kept him behind desks, in conference rooms, inside operations centers where emergencies were solved with phone calls and signatures. But that morning, he ran through the old service tunnel as if his life depended on it. Because it did. Robert Kline was close behind him. Claire followed, struggling to keep up. The corridor beneath Gate 41 seemed to stretch endlessly. Old pipes crossed the ceiling. Exposed cables hung from concrete walls. Every few yards, small green lights blinked in the darkness. Daniel barely noticed any of it. He could think about only one thing. Elena Voss was missing. And the last message had been clear. PHASE THREE — REUNION. Someone had anticipated their every move. Someone knew about Thomas Cross. Someone knew about Elena. And someone had been waiting sixteen years for Daniel to discover the truth. "Daniel!" Robert's voice echoed behind him. Daniel stopped. "What?" Robert caught up, breathing heavily. "We're going the wrong way." Daniel frowned. "No." Robert pointed toward the map on his tablet. "The executive archive is east." Daniel looked at the tunnel. "We're going west." "Exactly." Daniel turned toward him. "The map is wrong." Robert stared. "How do you know?" "Because my father built this tunnel." Daniel pointed toward a small marking on the wall. Three scratches. A circle. Then a line. Thomas had used the same symbol in the old notebooks Daniel remembered from childhood. It meant: Don't trust the map. Robert stared. "Your father really planned everything." Daniel nodded. "Maybe not everything." He looked into the darkness. "Just everything he was afraid of." 🍳 They continued. After several minutes, the tunnel opened into a large underground chamber. The room was filled with old equipment. But in the center stood a modern security terminal. Daniel approached it. The screen displayed: EXECUTIVE ARCHIVE Robert looked relieved. "We found it." Daniel shook his head. "No." "What?" "This is a decoy." Claire looked around. "How can you tell?" Daniel pointed toward the terminal. "There's no dust around it." Robert frowned. "So?" "Everything else here is old." Daniel touched the keyboard. "This was installed recently." Robert's expression changed. "Then someone wants us here." "Yes." Claire whispered: "Maybe we should leave." Daniel looked at her. "Maybe." The screen suddenly activated. A live video appeared. Elena Voss was sitting in a chair. Her hands were tied. Claire gasped. "She's alive." Daniel stepped closer. "Elena." The woman on the screen looked up. Her face was bruised. "Daniel?" Daniel froze. The video continued. "Don't trust anyone." A second voice came from behind her. "Especially me." The screen went black. Daniel stared. Robert whispered: "Was that Elena?" "Yes." Claire frowned. "But she said don't trust anyone." Daniel looked at the black screen. "That's not the part that bothers me." "What is?" "She said 'especially me.'" Robert looked confused. Daniel turned. "The person who showed us that video wanted us to think Elena was warning us." Claire asked: "Wasn't she?" Daniel shook his head. "Not necessarily." A door opened behind them. Everyone turned. A woman stepped into the chamber. Elena Voss. Daniel stared. She looked exactly like the woman in the video. Same clothes. Same hair. Same face. Robert raised his radio. "Elena?" She smiled. "Daniel." Daniel didn't move. "Where were you?" "In my office." Robert frowned. "No." She looked at him. "Yes." "We saw you enter the elevator." "I did." "Then how are you here?" Elena's smile disappeared. "I don't understand." Daniel watched her carefully. "What happened in the elevator?" "Nothing." "The lights went out." "Yes." "Someone spoke to you." Elena looked confused. "No one spoke to me." Daniel's expression hardened. "Then you're not Elena." The woman's face changed. Only slightly. But enough. Claire stepped backward. Robert raised his weapon. The woman smiled. "You've gotten better at this." Daniel stared. "Who are you?" She reached into her coat. Robert shouted: "Don't move!" She stopped. Then slowly pulled out an identification card. She placed it on the floor. Daniel looked at it. ELENA VOSS Everything matched. Photograph. Employee number. Security level. Signature. Robert stared. "It's authentic." Daniel shook his head. "No." He pointed toward her. "She isn't Elena." The woman smiled. "How did you know?" "Elena would have asked why I was still alive." The woman laughed. "Good." She stepped backward. "Your father taught you well." Daniel's blood ran cold. "You knew my father." "I knew him." "Who are you?" The woman hesitated. Then said: "Someone who owes him a debt." She turned toward the doorway. Robert raised his weapon. "Stop." The woman smiled. "You don't want to shoot me." "Try me." "Because if you do..." She pointed toward the ceiling. "...the explosives beneath this room will detonate." Everyone froze. Claire whispered: "Explosives?" The woman nodded. "Ten minutes." Robert looked at the ceiling. "You're lying." "Check." Robert scanned the room. His face changed. "There are thermal signatures." Daniel looked at him. "How many?" "Six." "Where?" "Under the floor." Daniel turned toward the woman. "What do you want?" She smiled. "You." "Why?" "Because Project Mirror cannot activate without you." Daniel frowned. "That's what you said before." "No." She stepped closer. "The system doesn't need your clearance." Daniel stared. "It needs your consent." "That's impossible." "Your father designed it that way." Daniel shook his head. "He wouldn't." "He did." The woman pointed toward the old computer. "Your identity is the master key." Daniel stared at the screen. "Then why use my name without me?" "Because they needed to prove the key worked." Robert understood. "The fake identity." "Yes." "The person pretending to be Daniel." The woman nodded. "He was the test." Daniel looked at her. "Who is he?" She smiled. "You'll meet him soon." A timer appeared on the screen. 09:12 Daniel stared. "You have nine minutes." "No." "You have nine minutes." The woman shook his head. "You have nine minutes." She stepped toward the exit. Robert raised his weapon. "You're not leaving." She looked at him. "You can either chase me..." She pointed toward the floor. "...or save yourselves." Then she disappeared through the doorway. Robert cursed. Claire looked at Daniel. "What do we do?" Daniel stared at the timer. "Find the explosives." They split up. Robert searched the east side. Claire searched the west. Daniel examined the old system. The timer continued. 08:34 08:33 Daniel opened the security architecture. The explosive system wasn't connected to the airport network. It was independent. That meant someone had installed it specifically for this room. He searched for manual overrides. Nothing. Then he noticed a familiar symbol. A circle. A line. His father's mark. Daniel touched the screen. A hidden menu appeared. EMERGENCY MANUAL OVERRIDE He opened it. Three options. DISARM LOCKDOWN TRANSFER Daniel stared. "Transfer." Robert looked over. "What?" "This system doesn't just control the explosives." "It can move the trigger." "Where?" Daniel opened the command. A map appeared. Six red points. All inside the airport. Robert swore. "They've planted explosives in six locations." Daniel nodded. "Not explosives." "What?" "Triggers." He pointed.
"These are pressure devices."
Robert understood.
"The room isn't going to explode."
Daniel nodded.
"Someone wants us to think it will."
"Then what happens?"
Daniel looked at the map.
"If we disarm this room, another one activates."
Claire walked over.
"Then we can't disarm them."
"No."
"What can we do?"
Daniel looked at the system.
"Transfer."
Robert frowned.
"Transfer what?"
"The trigger."
Daniel selected the option.
A destination appeared.
GATE 41
Daniel froze.
"They want us back there."
Claire looked frightened.
"Why?"
Daniel shook his head.
"Because Gate 41 is the real activation site."
At 11:03 a.m., across the airport, the man wearing Daniel Cross's identity walked into the executive operations center.
Nobody stopped him.
His badge worked.
His fingerprints worked.
His face matched.
The security cameras recognized him.
He walked directly to the central command room.
A security officer greeted him.
"Good morning, Mr. Cross."
The man smiled.
"Good morning."
"Everything is ready."
"Excellent."
The officer handed him a tablet.
The screen displayed:
PROJECT MIRROR
PHASE THREE
AUTHORIZATION REQUIRED
The man looked at the signature.
DANIEL CROSS
He pressed his finger against the scanner.
The system accepted it.
IDENTITY VERIFIED.
EXECUTIVE AUTHORIZATION ACCEPTED.
The man smiled.
Then he whispered:
"Sixteen years."
He looked toward the terminal.
"Finally."
Below Gate 41, Daniel saw the same authorization appear.
He stared at the screen.
"They've started."
Robert looked over.
"What?"
"Someone just activated the first stage."
"Where?"
"The executive center."
"Can we stop it?"
Daniel shook his head.
"Not from here."
Claire pointed at the timer.
"Then what?"
Daniel looked at the screen.
The timer had stopped.
00:00:00
Nothing happened.
Robert stared.
"Why didn't anything explode?"
Daniel smiled faintly.
"Because it was never a bomb."
"What was it?"
"A lock."
The room changed.
Every door slammed shut.
The lights turned red.
The computer displayed:
PHASE THREE COMPLETE
ALL SUBJECTS CONTAINED
Robert rushed to the door.
Locked.
Claire tried the emergency exit.
Locked.
Daniel stood still.
"What?"
Robert turned.
"We're trapped."
Daniel shook his head.
"No."
He looked toward the old computer.
"We're contained."
"What's the difference?"
Daniel stared at the message.
"Trapped means they want us dead."
"Contained means?"
"They need us alive."
Claire understood.
"For the activation."
Daniel nodded.
"They need my consent."
Robert looked at him.
"Then don't give it."
Daniel smiled.
"I wasn't planning to."
Suddenly, the speakers came alive.
A familiar voice filled the room.
Daniel's own voice.
"Mr. Cross."
Daniel looked up.
The voice continued.
"You have been given one final opportunity."
Daniel walked toward the speaker.
"Who are you?"
The voice laughed.
"You know."
"No."
"You saw me."
"When?"
"Sixteen years ago."
Daniel froze.
The voice continued.
"Your father gave me your identity."
Daniel's face hardened.
"Why?"
"Because he believed I could protect you."
Daniel stared.
"Who are you?"
Silence.
Then:
"My name is Daniel Cross."
Robert looked at Daniel.
Daniel's blood ran cold.
The voice continued.
"But unlike you..."
A pause.
"...I was created to finish what your father started."
The lights went out.
A single emergency light came on.
The door opened.
Someone stood outside.
The man from the photographs.
Daniel's face.
Daniel's eyes.
Daniel's scar.
He stepped into the room.
Everyone stared.
The man smiled.
"Hello, Daniel."
Daniel looked at him.
"Who are you?"
The man answered:
"The son your father never told you about."
Daniel's heart stopped.
"My father had no other son."
The man's smile faded.
"That's what he wanted you to believe."
He stepped closer.
"My name is Daniel Cross."
Daniel stared.
"No."
The man nodded.
"Yes."
Then he whispered:
"And one of us is about to disappear."
Behind him, every screen in the airport changed simultaneously.
PROJECT MIRROR — FINAL PHASE
TWO IDENTICAL IDENTITIES DETECTED
ONLY ONE MAY REMAIN
The countdown began.
09:59
09:58
09:57
Daniel looked at the other man.
For sixteen years, someone had been wearing his name.
Now he finally understood why.
The system didn't need to know which Daniel Cross was real.
It only needed the world to stop knowing.
And as the countdown continued, Daniel realized the terrible truth his father had hidden from him.
Project Mirror had never been designed to steal his identity.
It had been designed to make identity itself meaningless.
And if Daniel couldn't stop it before the countdown reached zero, nobody would be able to prove which of them had ever existed.
For several seconds, Daniel Cross could do nothing but stare at the man standing in the doorway.
It was like looking into a mirror that had learned how to breathe.
The same dark eyes.
The same narrow scar above the right eyebrow.
The same slightly crooked smile Daniel had inherited from his father.
Even the small crease beside the left eye was identical.
The stranger looked exactly as Daniel had looked at twenty years old.
Only one thing was different.
The eyes.
Daniel's eyes carried years of exhaustion, responsibility, and memories.
The other man's eyes carried none of them.
They were cold.
Almost empty.
Robert raised his weapon.
"Step away from him."
The stranger smiled.
"You still don't understand."
"Step away."
"You think I'm the threat."
Robert didn't lower the weapon.
The man looked at Daniel.
"But I'm not the one who built this."
Daniel finally found his voice.
"Who are you?"
The stranger took another step into the room.
"My name is Daniel Cross."
"I heard you."
"No."
The man's expression hardened.
"You heard the name."
He touched his chest.
"I am the person the system recognizes as Daniel Cross."
Daniel felt something tighten in his stomach.
"Then why do I exist?"
The stranger smiled.
"Because your father made a mistake."
"What mistake?"
"He loved you."
The words landed harder than Daniel expected.
The stranger continued.
"Thomas Cross was supposed to erase you."
Daniel stared.
"What?"
"He was supposed to make your identity disappear when you were nineteen."
"Why?"
"Because the program needed a clean subject."
Robert looked at Daniel.
"What program?"
The stranger pointed toward the screens.
"Project Mirror."
Daniel shook his head.
"My father would never do that."
"He did."
"No."
"He tried to protect you."
The stranger laughed softly.
"And that's where he failed."
The countdown continued.
08:41
08:40
Daniel glanced at the timer.