Chapter 9 - The Airport Intercept
Panic tore through my chest as I sprinted toward the open balcony doors, the cold night air rushing into the hotel suite.
I burst onto the terrace, screaming Emma's name into the darkness.
"Mommy, I'm right here," a tiny voice called out from the corner.
I turned and found Emma playing safely behind a large potted plant, having simply wandered out when she woke up confused.
I collapsed onto my knees, pulling her into my arms and sobbing with sheer relief as the FBI agents finally breached my hotel room door.
The lead agent assured me they had the building surrounded, but Daniel had somehow slipped out through the underground service tunnels.
He was now officially a federal fugitive, and a nationwide manhunt was immediately initiated.
By sunrise, I was sitting in the FBI tactical command center, drinking bitter coffee while agents tracked his digital footprint.
"He withdrew the last ten thousand dollars in cash from a hidden ATM an hour ago," the lead agent reported.
"He is running, and he is going to try to leave the country," I concluded, looking at the city map on the monitors.
I remembered that Daniel never went anywhere without the custom luxury watch I bought him for our fifth anniversary.
What he didn't know was that I had embedded a microscopic GPS tracker inside the watch band months ago when I first suspected he was hiding assets.
I logged into my private security app and handed the tablet to the federal agents.
A glowing red dot was currently moving at highway speeds directly toward the international airport.
The FBI dispatched a heavily armed tactical team in helicopters, and I insisted on riding in the command vehicle behind them.
We arrived at the airport just as Daniel was attempting to board a private charter flight to a country with no extradition treaty.
He was dragging Chloe by the arm, furiously screaming at the flight crew to hurry up and close the doors.
Federal vehicles swarmed the tarmac, surrounding the private jet with flashing lights and heavily armed agents.
Daniel let go of Chloe's arm and raised his hands, finally realizing there was no way out.
I stepped out of the command vehicle and walked right up to the arrest perimeter, wanting to look him in the eyes as they cuffed him.
"You lose, Daniel," I said as the agents slammed him against the side of the plane.
He didn't scream or beg for mercy like I expected.
Instead, a chilling, triumphant smirk spread across his face as the metal cuffs clicked around his wrists.
"I might be going to prison, Sarah, but you are never going to have peace," he laughed maniacally.
May you like
He leaned forward as the agents dragged him away, his voice echoing across the noisy tarmac.
"You should really check the legal paperwork for Chloe's house, because I didn't sign it—Emma did."
