Chapter 162: A Threat from the Past

The message arrived at Awake Stories rather than Freya's private accounts.

RETURN THE CROSS FILES.

No greeting.

No signature.

Mia forwarded it to security immediately.

Freya's first reaction was irritation rather than fear.

"Seriously? Again?"

Louis did not share her casual attitude.

Northstar's security team coordinated with Freya's independent security consultant and law enforcement. The email had passed through multiple relays, but investigators quickly determined the sender had specific knowledge of the Mirror backup.

That narrowed the possibilities.

Claire received a similar message.

Mercer did too.

The demand referred to "Cross files," suggesting the sender believed Claire's recovered data contained something valuable.

Freya wondered whether it involved the cross-world anomaly.

Derek suspected something more ordinary.

"People kill for money more often than metaphysics."

He was right.

The Mirror archive also contained old Crosswind corporate records. Investigators reviewed the data again and found encrypted financial files that had never been fully reconstructed because everyone had focused on Gentle Devotion.

The files referenced early investors in Crosswind Digital.

One investor was a shell company.

That shell company connected to Greyline.

Freya stared at the report.

Adrian's network had invested indirectly in Claire's publishing platform years before anyone realized it.

Claire was furious.

"I thought Crosswind was independent."

The investment had been small enough to avoid control, but it may have given Greyline access to technical documentation.

More importantly, the encrypted records included a list of payments and internal contacts.

Some individuals had never been charged in Adrian's case.

The threatening messages were suddenly much easier to understand.

Someone wanted those names buried.

Freya handed everything to investigators.

She did not attempt her own search.

That was growth.

Louis noticed.

"I'm proud of you."

"Don't sound surprised."

"I remember when you followed Clement into a parking garage."

"That was different."

"It was extremely stupid."

Freya could not defend herself.

Security increased temporarily around Awake Stories, Sunroom, Claire, and Mercer.

The sender escalated with another message.

YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE HOLDING.

Freya replied only through law enforcement-approved channels.

She personally sent nothing.

Within days, investigators traced a mistake in the relay chain to a former Greyline compliance officer named Owen Price.

Owen had disappeared after Adrian's arrest.

Derek recognized the name.

"He managed contractor payments."

That meant the encrypted files could expose more than old investments.

They could reveal people who had helped Greyline survive after Adrian fell.

Freya looked at Louis.

Apparently normal life had decided to take another short break.

The investigators also asked Freya not to discuss the threat publicly. She agreed. Public attention could pressure Owen, but it could also warn him about what authorities knew. Freya had become much better at resisting the satisfying but strategically terrible option.

Freya made a note of the development and returned to the practical work in front of her. She had learned that a complicated life became manageable only when she separated what she knew, what she suspected, and what she could actually do next. Louis respected that habit, even when his instinct was to solve everything immediately. For now, they chose the next useful step and left the unanswered part where it belonged.

Freya made a note of the development and returned to the practical work in front of her. She had learned that a complicated life became manageable only when she separated what she knew, what she suspected, and what she could actually do next. Louis respected that habit, even when his instinct was to solve everything immediately. For now, they chose the next useful step and left the unanswered part where it belonged.

Freya made a note of the development and returned to the practical work in front of her. She had learned that a complicated life became manageable only when she separated what she knew, what she suspected, and what she could actually do next. Louis respected that habit, even when his instinct was to solve everything immediately. For now, they chose the next useful step and left the unanswered part where it belonged.