Chapter 4 - The Broken Promise
Thomas didn’t speak. His fingers tightened on the plastic receiver until the casing creaked under the strain.
""I know you hear me, Tommy,"" the voice continued, dripping with calculated malice. It wasn't Marcus Vance; it was Julian Cross, Vance’s enforcer—a man whose presence had terrified Thomas even when they stood on the same side of the ledger. ""Elena gave you up fifteen minutes ago at the bus terminal. Took a bit of persuasion, but she broke. She's resting in the trunk of my sedan. Bring the boy out, and maybe you two can have a proper family reunion before we settle your outstanding debt.""
Thomas slammed the phone onto the floor, snapping the coiled cord from the base unit.
The air in his lungs burned. Julian was lying about Elena breaking willingly—she would have died before handing Leo over—which meant she was either severely injured or running out of time.
Leo looked up into Thomas’s face, his hazel eyes wide and filled with an instinctive terror. He reached into his overall pocket once more and pulled out the single silver dollar, pushing it against Thomas's chest with trembling hands.
""Donut..."" Leo whimpered softly, tears spilling down his pale cheeks. ""Mommy said... trade for help...""
A heavy weight shattered inside Thomas’s chest. Elena had told the child to buy a pastry so Thomas would look at him, so Thomas would see the eyes and recognize what he had abandoned. She had sent him here knowing Julian was closing in, using her own body as a decoy at the bus terminal to buy their son a few precious minutes.
Thomas took the cold silver dollar and slid it into his pocket. Then, he grabbed the warm glazed donut, wrapped it quickly in wax paper, and tucked it securely into the toddler’s small jacket pocket.
""We’re going to get your mom,"" Thomas whispered, his voice deadly calm.
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He picked up the heavy steel rolling pin from the prep table and slipped his leather work boots over his sneakers. He moved quietly to the back corridor, avoiding the front windows entirely. But as he reached the metal security door, he noticed the padlock was already hanging loose, sliced clean through with industrial bolt cutters.
Julian wasn't at the front door. He was already inside the building.
