Smoke still clings to their clothes when MASTICATE crowds into a Denny’s at one in the morning. The evidence they pulled from the fire is worse than expected—and clearer than they wanted. A woman held for months. A body that died weeks ago. Proof that whatever happened in that basement started with Franklin Dyer, but it sure as hell didn't end there.
As the team studies the photos, the pattern locks into focus. Gulley isn’t a loose end or a side problem—he’s the center of it. The real target. And the only way to reach him runs straight through Lieutenant John Marlin.
But time is running out. Deputies are watching. A routine drive turns into a high-risk stop. Authority evaporates the moment sirens come on. Every decision carries a cost they can feel settling in.
When MASTICATE sits down with Marlin, it’s the start of a countdown. And whatever happens next, they won’t be setting the terms.