Chapter 6 - The Trap at Home
Elena felt the ground dissolve beneath her boots. ""My apartment?""
""Arthur bought the entire residential block through a nominee company six months ago,"" Julian confessed, his voice shaking. ""He didn't just want the Vance family erased. He needed the Bureau to believe you were compromised. The moment the raid went down here, an anonymous tip was scheduled to route to Internal Affairs.""
Marcus’s radio crackled to life before Elena could speak.
""Director Vance, this is Command Base Alpha. We have a priority breach. Internal Affairs Task Force, led by Deputy Director Keller, just secured a federal warrant for your arrest. They're en route to your residential address right now.""
Marcus stared at Elena in disbelief. ""Keller? He’s the head of oversight. If he finds those bonds in your apartment, they will claim you were working with the syndicate the entire time. That this whole raid was an inside hit to eliminate rivals.""
""Arthur covered every flank,"" Elena said, her mind racing with chilling clarity. Her father hadn't just faked his death; he had orchestrated an elaborate execution of her entire identity. If she was framed as a corrupt agent, any evidence she presented against him in the future would be dismissed as the desperate lies of a criminal.
""Marcus, secure Julian in an off-book safe site,"" Elena ordered, turning toward the emergency stairwell. ""Do not register him at the federal field office. If Keller gets custody of Julian, Julian will suffer an 'accidental overdose' before morning.""
""Where are you going?"" Marcus called out, rushing after her. ""You can't go to your apartment! Keller’s men will shoot on sight if you resist!""
""I'm not going to run,"" Elena said, kicking open the fire escape door. ""I'm going to beat them there.""
Outside, the night air hit her like a wall of ice. Rain had begun to fall over the estate, washing the blood from her face down onto her white shirt. She sprinted toward an unmarked black sedan parked in the shadows of the estate's hedge maze.
Throwing herself into the driver’s seat, she hotwired the encrypted ignition system. The engine roared to life.
As she slammed the car into reverse and spun the tires onto the gravel driveway, her cell phone buzzed on the passenger seat. An unknown number flashed on the screen.
Elena activated the speakerphone. ""Speak.""
May you like
A familiar, warm baritone echoed through the speakers—the voice that used to read her bedtime stories twenty years ago.
""You always were the quickest student in the academy, Elena,"" Arthur Vance said smoothly. ""Do you like the parting gift I left in your floorboards?""
