Chapter 5 - The Safe-Cracker’s Daughter
The underground clinic was completely silent except for the soft hum of the medical monitors.
Gabriel stared intensely at the faded ink on Mia’s collarbone while the doctor wrapped her shoulder in clean white bandages.
“Your father was Thomas Carver,” Gabriel said, his deep voice carrying a strange mixture of respect and disbelief.
Mia looked down at her hands, her pale cheeks flushing slightly under his intense scrutiny.
“He was the best vault specialist the Chicago syndicate ever had, before he retired and tried to become a legitimate insurance salesman,” she answered quietly.
“He taught you how to pick locks,” Gabriel noted, finally understanding how she had escaped the warehouse so easily.
“He taught me how to survive in a world that routinely eats people alive,” Mia corrected him firmly.
Gabriel stepped closer to the examination table, his dark eyes searching her exhausted face.
“You intentionally applied for the accounting job at my company to hide from your father’s old enemies,” he deduced.
Mia nodded, a single tear escaping and sliding down her bruised cheek.
“I just wanted a quiet, boring life where nobody shot at me or kidnapped babies,” she whispered.
Gabriel reached out and gently wiped the tear away with his thumb, his touch surprisingly soft for a man who had just killed three people with his bare hands.
“I am going to completely destroy the men who dragged you back into this life,” he promised her fiercely.
The heavy iron door of the clinic suddenly buzzed, and Marco stumbled into the room.
Marco was bleeding heavily from a nasty graze on his forehead, but he was holding his tactical rifle tightly.
“I managed to lose the rest of Vincent’s men in the surface alleys,” Marco reported, breathing heavily.
“Are the armored transport vehicles secured at the Gold Coast property?” Gabriel demanded.
“Yes, boss, the penthouse is completely locked down and heavily fortified,” Marco confirmed.
They loaded Mia and the sleeping baby into a discreet civilian car Marco had stolen from a nearby parking garage.
They drove cautiously through the dark, storm-swept streets, completely avoiding the main highways.
They finally arrived at the massive skyscraper that served as Gabriel’s heavily fortified personal fortress.
They rode the private elevator up to the top floor, stepping into the sprawling, luxurious penthouse.
Before anyone could even sit down, Gabriel’s encrypted satellite phone rang loudly in the quiet room.
May you like
Gabriel answered it, putting the call on speakerphone so Marco and Mia could hear.
“I want the accountant delivered to my warehouse by midnight, Gabriel, or I will leak the financial documents that will send your entire family to federal prison,” Damian Sterling’s voice echoed through the room.
