Chapter 11 - The Black Tide
Cold. Absolute, bone-crushing cold engulfed Mark the moment his body breached the surface of the Atlantic.
The saltwater burned the bullet wounds in his shoulder and side, dragging him down into the lightless depths. His tactical vest felt like lead, pulling him toward the jagged reefs below. For a second, his vision blurred, the darkness whispering of surrender.
Leo.
The thought struck like an electric shock. If he died here, Julian would murder Clara, execute the child, and inherit an empire built on stolen blood.
Mark clawed at the quick-release straps of his armor, tearing the heavy vest away. Kicking with everything he had left, he broke through the surface, gasping for air amidst the towering swells.
Ten yards away, the smuggler's twin-engine vessel bounced against the makeshift sea-dock. Elena and Clara were already aboard, desperately reaching over the gunwale. Clara grabbed Mark’s wrist with surprising strength, pulling him up into the cabin as the mercenary boat captain throttled the engines to maximum.
The vessel surged forward, cutting through the waves just as a volley of tracer rounds chewed into the water behind their stern.
""He's hit! He's bleeding out!"" Elena cried, pressing a first-aid towel against Mark’s torn shoulder.
""I'm... fine,"" Mark coughed, spitting seawater onto the deck. He looked at Clara, whose face was pale with shock. ""The baby... looks like you. He has your eyes.""
Clara broke down, burying her face in her trembling hands. ""They told me I was saving a billionaire's dying legacy. Eleanor came to my clinic three years ago. She promised to pay off my family's debts. She said the mother was infertile. Then, after the delivery, they drugged me and locked me away.""
""Who was the biological father?"" Mark asked, his voice strained as he fought against the creeping blackness at the edges of his consciousness. ""Julian claims the DNA test proved he is the father.""
Clara looked up, her expression hardening with fierce conviction.
""Julian never touched me,"" Clara said clearly. ""Eleanor used an anonymous donor sample from the private cryogenic bank in Boston. Sample code: Aegis-One.""
Mark froze. His breath hitched in his throat.
Aegis-One was the personal, classified donor code Mark had registered ten years ago, before he underwent radiation therapy for early-stage lymphatic cancer.
Leo was his. Leo had always been his.
""Julian forged the entire genetic profile,"" Mark whispered, a terrifying calm settling over his shattered body. ""He made the board believe he owned my son.""
Suddenly, the vessel's satellite phone on the console began to ring. The captain looked at Mark, terrified.
May you like
Mark reached out with a bloody hand and answered it.
""Mark,"" Julian’s voice purred with sickening triumph. ""I see you survived the swim. But I’m afraid you're too late for the grand finale. Look at the morning news.""
