Chapter 4 - The Vanishing Act
Mateo hurled Hector to the ground, leaving him writhing in agony, and sprinted back through the metal service door. The kitchen was in total disarray. Pots clattered on the stainless-steel prep tables, an executive chef was shouting in frantic French, and two line cooks were backed against the walk-in freezer with their hands raised.
""Where is she?"" Mateo roared over the din, abandoning any pretense of subtlety.
A terrified prep boy pointed a trembling spatula toward the side exit leading to the subterranean parking garage. ""Three men... they grabbed Clara by the hair and dragged her down the stairs! They had guns!""
Mateo didn't waste a heartbeat. He lunged through the heavy fire doors and took the concrete steps three at a time. The echoes of screeching tires reverberated up the stairwell. By the time he slammed through the lower crash bar into the dimly lit underground garage, a charcoal Mercedes van was already burning rubber toward the exit ramp, leaving black skid marks across the oil-stained concrete.
Through the van's heavily tinted rear window, Mateo caught a brief, horrific silhouette of Clara struggling against two massive figures, her small hands beating desperately against the glass before someone pulled her back into the shadows.
Mateo drew his sidearm and aimed for the rear left tire. He fired two controlled shots. The sharp bangs echoed deafeningly in the enclosed space. The tire shredded, rubber flying, but the driver managed to correct the drift, violently smashing through the parking barrier arm and roaring up into the street above.
Mateo bolted to his own vehicle—a black, unmarked Dodge Charger parked in the VIP bay. As he threw the car into reverse and peeled out of the garage, his phone buzzed on the console. It was an unknown, encrypted number.
May you like
He tapped the speakerphone with a bloodied hand. ""Speak.""
""She’s very pretty, Mateo,"" a smooth, arrogant voice purred through the speaker. ""Just as soft as her letters said you remembered her. If you want her breathing by dawn, come to the ironworks at Pier 9. Come alone.""
