Chapter 11 - The Puppet Master
The cold voice on the other end of the line sent a shockwave of dread through my chest.
"David?" I stammered, unable to comprehend what was happening.
"Did you honestly think my sister had the brains to pull off a multi-million-dollar extraction?" David laughed, the sound hollow and chilling.
"Lauren is a narcissist, Marcus," David continued casually.
"She is brilliant at throwing tantrums, but completely useless at logistics."
I looked across the shattered cabin floor at Lauren, who was pinned beneath the heavy boot of a tactical mercenary.
Her eyes were wide with a terror far more real than any performance she had put on over the past four months.
"The police didn't arrest you at my house," I realized aloud.
"Those weren't real cops who showed up at the guest room, were they?"
David chuckled softly on the speaker.
"Private military contractors, Marcus," David answered smoothly.
"They wore uniforms, flashed some fake badges, and escorted me out of the neighborhood without firing a single bullet."
"I needed you to run, Marcus."
"I needed you to track Lauren directly to this cabin."
"Why?" I demanded, my hands shaking against the phone.
"Because my darling sister stole something far more valuable than insurance money," David said, his tone turning razor-sharp.
"She thought she was stealing a few million from your company."
"What she actually stole was an encrypted ledger containing forty million dollars in offshore syndicate funds."
"And the biometric decryption key is hardwired to your company credentials, Marcus."
"You are the only person who can unlock the vault."
The lead operative snatched the phone back from my ear and spoke two curt words: "Target secured."
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Before I could run, a heavy cloth soaked in chloroform clamped down over my face.
The room spun wildly out of control, and darkness dragged me beneath the surface once again.
