The cheap motel coffee tasted like burnt rust, doing little to soothe the jagged edges of Ethan's anxiety. Professor Dubois’ note, tucked into the ratty Bible in the drawer, was now committed to memory: “They seek the cipher within you. Trust no one. Decipher your past to secure your future.” Cryptic, as always. But the chilling certainty behind those words resonated deep within him, a primal warning bell echoing in the ruins of his former life.