Not as safe as you think.

 The Yellow Betrayal

Mark had spent months undercover, unearthing a massive corruption scandal involving a prominent government official. His exposé was airtight—photos, testimonies, financial records—all meticulously compiled. With a trembling hand, he printed the draft from his home office and carried it to a trusted colleague at a local coffee shop.

Hours later, as he reviewed the final edits with his colleague, he noticed strange, nearly invisible dots scattered across the margins of the pages. He dismissed them as a printer glitch, focusing instead on his story’s imminent publication.

The next morning, a knock at his door shattered his routine. Three men in suits identified themselves as government investigators. They had a warrant, citing possession of classified documents. Mark froze. His stomach sank as they presented a printed page from his draft—one he had never shared electronically.

“How did you find this?” he stammered.

“Your printer helped us,” one agent replied coolly. “Those dots tell us when and where this was printed. Even the printer’s serial number.”

Mark's blood ran cold. The very tool he trusted to spread the truth had betrayed him. As they cuffed him, his mind raced. He had uncovered the corruption, but the hidden dots on his draft had uncovered him.

The story would go unread, buried along with his freedom.