The next morning, Angus showed up at our temporary Zurich base, no warning, no escort. Just him and that stubborn determination I remembered all too well.
Petra met him at the gate and brought him up. He didn't look around in awe or ask many questions. Just scanned the place like a field agent would cataloging exits, noting personnel, watching behavior.
He was testing us.
"You're early," I said as he stepped into the command room.
"Couldn't sleep," he replied. "You said you'd explain. So start explaining."
I motioned him to a seat and brought up a live map a web of connections, assets, and threat vectors. Most of it would look like classified gibberish to an outsider. But to someone trained like him, it told a story.
"This isn't about control," I said. "It's about containment. Every node here fronts, dummy corps, and satellite systems exist to prevent chaos from finding their way to you. Or Riley. Or our child."
Angus didn't speak. He just studied the network, then leaned back.
"And what exactly are you keeping out?"
"Names you wouldn't recognize.Arms traffickers. Paramilitary groups that don't even exist on paper. Ghost operatives who've gone fully rogue. People who see family as leverage."
He looked at me. "And you're doing this alone?"
I shook my head. "Not alone. With Riley. With people like Petra, Kosta, a dozen others who understand the stakes. And soon.. maybe with you."
He scoffed. "You're recruiting me now?"
"No. I'm trusting you. There's a difference. And don't let what I'm going to say next get to you, I'm telling you now that you may be my brother, but i won't let you get in the way. Angus, i've seen things and did things that you won't like, so im giving you a peek at who i am. This is not a threat it's a warning."
Later, in our quarters, Riley was pacing. She stopped when I walked in.
"How'd he take it?" she asked.
"Better than I expected. Worse than I'd hoped," I replied. "He asked good questions. Hard ones."
She sat on the edge of the bed. "He deserves to know everything."
"And he will," I said. "But we give him space. Let him process."
She nodded. "He'll come around. He's stubborn but not blind."
I sat beside her, taking her hand. "Speaking of telling people.. when do we tell Jack?"
She blinked. "Jack?"
"Yes, Jack Dalton, he's like a father to you. He deserves to know. About us. About the baby. And.." I paused, "that I'm Angus's brother."
Riley exhaled slowly. "You're right. He's going to have a lot of questions."
"Then we answer them together," I said. "He might not like it at first, but he'll come around. He cares about you. He'll care about the baby. And maybe, in time, he'll understand why I had to stay in the shadows."
She leaned her head on my shoulder. "Let's do it soon. Before the world gets any louder."
Thousands of miles away, in a secure underground briefing room outside Washington, D.C., Matty Webber sat with a man whose presence hadn't graced Phoenix Foundation halls in over a decade.
James MacGyver. Angus's father.
The lights were low, a single file glowing on the digital table between them.
Matty pointed to a redacted document. "This new outfit.. they're good. Too good. We're picking up humanitarian contracts on paper, but underneath that? They're moving resources like a military ghost."
James nodded. "So far, they're not hostile. No direct threats. Just.. layers. Shields. As if they're preparing for something. Or protecting something."
"Any leads on who's running it?"
"None solid. But whoever it is, they know how to stay invisible."
Matty's eyes narrowed. "Nobody stays invisible forever. Not from us."
James leaned back, contemplative. "Then maybe it's someone who doesn't want to be found until they're ready."
They didn't know it yet.
But the man they were watching
Was closer than they ever imagined.