EPILOGUE
The basement tech room remains illuminated long after most brothers have retired for the night. Ice Pick's determined efforts with the encrypted ledger data have continued without interruption since the Vancouver operation provided new approaches to the security algorithms protecting its most sensitive contents.
At 3:17 AM, the decryption program finally breaks through the final layer of protection, revealing contents that have resisted analysis for months. As data flows across his screen, Ice Pick's expression shifts from triumph to shock to grim understanding.
The ledger's most secured section contains what they suspected—names of high-level officials connected to the trafficking network. But one name stands out among the others, appearing repeatedly in connection with operational oversight and protection arrangements.
Senator Thomas Richardson, currently leading candidate for next year's presidential nomination.
Ice Pick reaches for his phone, recognition dawning that their fight against the trafficking network has only just begun. The text to Falcon is brief but will change everything:
Ledger decrypted. You need to see this now.
The battle continues.