Chapter 12 - Highway Crossroads
The SUV’s headlights cut through the torrential downpour as Julian drove with reckless speed down Interstate 90. He dialed Elena's phone over and over, only to be met with the sterile click of voicemail. His hands gripped the wheel so hard his joints throbbed. The message he had recovered from Marcus's laptop before fleeing the house was clear: Clara had been compromised three months ago.
Julian’s GPS flared red, signaling an intersection approaching the turnoff for the private hangars on the outskirts of the county. He floored the gas pedal, the engine roaring in protest. If Vivienne’s men intercepted Elena before he reached the airfield, there would be no negotiation, no ransom, and no tomorrow for the twin heartbeats he had just seen on that monitor.
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Ahead in the darkness, red taillights swung wildly across the wet lanes. It was Clara’s sedan. Julian hit his high beams, flashing them frantically against her rear window. Inside the sedan, Elena saw the blinding lights in the rearview mirror and recognized the grille of Julian’s vehicle. "He’s behind us!" she gasped.
Clara panicked, pressing harder on the gas. "He can't catch us! If he stops us, Vivienne will destroy everything!" The sedan hydroplaned suddenly across a slick patch of standing water, spinning out of control toward the metal highway barrier as Julian slammed his brakes to avoid an impending collision.
