CHAPTER 6: PROJECT PHOENIX WAS NEVER SUPPOSED TO EXIST
The room fell into absolute silence.
No one spoke.
No one even breathed.
The detective carefully unfolded the faded DNA report while every eye followed his trembling hands.
"There has to be some mistake..."
But there wasn't.
The report clearly stated:
SUBJECT X: UNKNOWN
BIOLOGICAL MOTHER: NOT FOUND
BIOLOGICAL FATHER: CLASSIFIED
Underneath was a handwritten note.
"Destroy all evidence after Subject X reaches adulthood."
Eleanor's hands began shaking.
"What... is Project Phoenix?"
The oldest detective slowly closed the file.
His face had turned ghostly white.
"I've heard that name only once."
"Twenty-five years ago."
"It was a classified government investigation."
Everyone stared.
"It officially never existed."
Adrian continued searching the vault.
Hidden behind another shelf was an old VHS tape labeled:
PHOENIX — DAY ONE
A dusty television sat nearby.
The detective inserted the tape.
Static filled the screen.
Then...
A laboratory appeared.
Scientists wearing white coats surrounded rows of newborn babies.
Each crib carried only a number.
No names.
No families.
No birthdays.
Only experiments.
A narrator's voice echoed through the speakers.
"Project Phoenix was created to produce future leaders through controlled genetic selection."
The room went silent.
The recording continued.
"Most subjects failed."
"Only one survived."
The camera slowly zoomed toward the final crib.
Inside...
A newborn baby wearing the exact silver necklace Isabella had carried her entire life.
Her identification tag read:
SUBJECT X-01
Isabella collapsed into Adrian's arms.
"No..."
"No..."
"That's impossible..."
Suddenly...
The screen changed.
A scientist stepped into view.
When he removed his surgical mask...
William Hartwell appeared twenty-three years younger.
Gasps filled the room.
"He worked for them..."
Eleanor whispered.
William hadn't stolen Isabella.
He had rescued her.
Or...
At least that was what everyone believed.
Until the tape played its final sixty seconds.
A woman burst into the laboratory carrying the infant.
She screamed,
"You promised she would have a normal life!"
William grabbed the baby and shouted,
"Run!"
Gunfire erupted.
The recording ended.
The screen turned black.
The detective rewound the tape several times.
He paused on the woman's face.
His expression changed instantly.
"I know her."
Adrian looked stunned.
"Who is she?"
The detective swallowed hard.
"She isn't a scientist."
"She was the lead prosecutor who disappeared before exposing Project Phoenix."
Eleanor frowned.
"But if she protected Isabella..."
"Why would William hide the truth?"
No one answered.
Because a loud beep echoed through the vault.
A hidden satellite phone suddenly rang.
The detective cautiously answered.
A distorted voice spoke only one sentence.
"You opened the vault."
"So now..."
"Every witness must die."
Before anyone could react...
The entire building shook violently.
A deafening explosion erupted from the floor below.
The lights went out.
Smoke poured into the vault.
The exits slammed shut automatically.
May you like
Someone outside had been waiting twenty-three years...
To make sure Project Phoenix stayed buried forever.
