Chapter 12 - The First Breath
Elena’s hand gripped Julian’s wrist with surprising strength, her nails digging through the fabric of his sleeve. Her eyes darted wildly across the ceiling tiles, unfocused, terrified, before finally locking onto Julian’s face.
“Julian…” she choked out through dry, cracked lips. Her voice was raspy, barely audible over the hum of the cooling fans.
“I’m here. I’m right here, Elena,” Julian said, wrapping his arms around her shoulders and pulling her upper body against his chest. Tears he had held back through seven years of grief and deception spilled down his face. “You’re safe. You’re at Blackwood. It’s over.”
Elena’s gaze drifted downward, catching sight of the little girl standing by the foot of the bed. Her breath hitched. A sound of profound, unadulterated relief broke from her chest—a half-sob, half-gasp that shook her entire frame.
“Maya…”
“Mommy!” Maya scrambled up onto the mattress, throwing her arms around Elena’s neck. The little floral purse fell to the floor, forgotten. Elena buried her face in Maya’s dark curls, weeping uncontrollably as the monitors around them gradually stabilized into a calm, steady rhythm.
Marcus stepped to the doorway, his eyes scanning the hallway. “Julian, we need to move. Victoria’s father has two security helicopters en route from the city. They’ll be here in eight minutes.”
Julian helped Elena sit up. Though she was weak from months of immobility, her eyes had cleared, burning with the fierce intelligence he remembered. She pointed toward the server rack on the far wall.
“The hard drives, Julian,” Elena said, her voice growing stronger with every breath. “Don’t just take the backups. Take the master core. It contains the international routing codes for the entire cartel network. Victoria’s family isn’t acting alone. The entire state judiciary is compromised.”
Julian looked at Victoria, who sat slumped against the wall, bound and silent, her eyes filled with cold hatred.
“You’re going to spend the rest of your life in a federal cage, Victoria,” Julian said coldly.
May you like
Victoria looked up, a bitter smile touching her lips. “You think my father will let you reach the courthouse alive? Look at the cameras, Julian.”
Julian turned toward the security bank. On the outdoor feed, three black tactical helicopters were descending through the rain, their high-powered searchlights turning the courtyard into daylight.
