Chapter 2 - Into the Ashes
Theodore drove his armored SUV at ninety miles an hour down the dark Texas highway.
He ignored every red light and stop sign in his path.
The distant glow of orange flames illuminated the night sky like a terrible beacon.
When he finally skidded into the dirt lot of the trailer park, the scene was absolute chaos.
Firetrucks were spraying water onto the charred, twisted metal remains of a small mobile home.
Theodore threw his door open and sprinted toward the blazing wreckage.
A police officer grabbed his shoulder to hold him back from the intense heat.
"Let me go, my wife is in there!" Theodore screamed, struggling against the officer's grip.
"Nobody is inside that structure, sir," the officer yelled over the roaring flames.
Theodore stopped fighting, his chest heaving as he tried to process the words.
"The neighbors said a black van pulled up ten minutes before the explosion," the officer explained.
"Two men dragged a woman and two infants into the vehicle before tossing a firebomb through the window."
Theodore dropped to his knees in the ash and dirt.
Brianna had somehow realized that he was investigating her lies.
She had ordered a hit squad to erase Gabrielle and the twins before Theodore could reach them.
Victor arrived a few minutes later, pulling Theodore up from the ground.
"I tracked the license plate of the black van using the city traffic cameras," Victor said, holding up a glowing tablet.
"They are heading toward the abandoned shipping yards near the Houston port."
Theodore’s eyes hardened into cold, murderous steel.
He reached into the trunk of Victor's car and pulled out a heavy steel crowbar.
"Call your federal contacts and get an armed team to the docks," Theodore ordered.
Victor nodded and dialed a secure number on his satellite phone.
But before the call could connect, Theodore’s personal cell phone began to vibrate in his pocket.
The caller ID displayed an unknown international number.
May you like
Theodore answered it and heard the terrifying sound of a baby crying in the background.
"If you bring the police to the docks, Theo, I will throw your beautiful sons into the ocean," Brianna whispered.
