Horizons Wake

Beck refuses to cooperate with drone hack. Francis interrogates him and fails, then pauses in the corridor — a rare crack in his composure Helen witnesses. Victor reveals children will be at target, triggering his own suppressed trauma.

Lyle and Kate escape the hotel, steal a car, and flee east. Kate reveals Victor is a JanCorp mercenary who faked her death to control Helen. Lyle commits to the partnership, then realizes his knowledge of Markwell's relay architecture gives them a way to stop the drones — shifting from fugitives...

Kate and Lyle hide in a Phoenix hotel while Kate explains why Markwell wants him dead—as both scapegoat and security risk. Lyle's forgotten work phone triggers a police response. Kate tranquilizes two officers, disguises Lyle by bruising his face, and they escape in stolen uniforms.

Helen discovers Jack cannot hack, making her honeytrap wasted. Victor decides to use Jack as leverage against Beck. Helen, inspired by specific memory of Kate on her last night before deployment, begins sabotaging the operation.

Kate approaches Lyle at a diner, orchestrates his kidnapping by a hit squad, then rescues him with tranquilizers. Lyle reveals he discovered a backdoor in Markwell's drone software that could allow someone to take control of military drones and bomb a city.

Helen seduces and sedates Jack Wallis at MGM Grand while Francis captures Beck. Helen writes a secret note as breadcrumb evidence. Intercut: Lyle discovers the backdoor in Markwell systems and decides to tell Peter tomorrow—too late.

Victor reveals Imran Hyderi to Helen as the Markwell engineer who built the drone backdoor. Helen confronts Victor about kidnapping Imran. Victor explains the Markwell/Air Force bridge through Imran hidden access layer. Francis reports developers found Imran backdoor.

Lyle and Peter discuss finding a backdoor in Markwell code. Peter reveals the code author Hyderi was based in Lahore and has disappeared. Peter mentions his wife Rachel and their Sunday dinner tradition with Lyle, showing the personal bond between friends before Peter's death in Ch 4.

Helen studies intelligence files on drone pilots Jack Wallis and Steven Beck at her Nevada hotel, preparing for Victor's honeytrap mission. She learns about Beck's hacking capabilities and the Markwell software vulnerabilities, struggles with her role as Victor's instrument, and receives word...