Chapter 5 - The Unknown Ally
The blinding white light seared my retinas, but muscle memory took over completely.
I grabbed Grace and Amara and pulled them behind the heavy steel frame of the armored SUV.
Blind, frantic gunfire echoed off the concrete walls as Silas's men shot wildly into the darkness.
I heard the distinct, suppressed cough of a sniper rifle firing three rapid times.
Three of the elite Syndicate cleaners collapsed to the ground, dead before they even realized what hit them.
Silas roared in pure fury, blindly swinging his silver cane as he scrambled for cover.
Fall back into the maintenance shaft immediately.
The remaining two cleaners dragged Silas away, retreating rapidly into the pitch-black tunnels.
The deafening echoes of the gunfire slowly faded into a tense, heavy silence.
I kept my pistol raised, desperately blinking to clear the purple spots from my vision.
A figure dropped gracefully from a rusted catwalk twenty feet above us.
The person was dressed in sleek, black tactical gear, wearing a helmet with thermal goggles.
The stranger slowly reached up and removed the helmet.
Long, dark hair spilled out over her shoulders, framing a face I had not seen in a decade.
It was Isabella, my younger sister.
She had been completely excommunicated from the family ten years ago for refusing to join the criminal empire.
Hello, Julian, she said calmly, slinging her massive sniper rifle over her shoulder.
I stared at her in absolute shock, lowering my weapon entirely.
I thought you were living a quiet life in Europe.
Isabella scoffed, a bitter expression crossing her face.
You cannot live a quiet life when the Syndicate puts a ten million dollar bounty on your head.
She walked over to the armored SUV and shattered the driver's side window with the butt of her rifle.
She unlocked the doors and gestured for us to get inside.
Silas has already dispatched a secondary kill team to secure the perimeter above us.
We need to get to my safehouse before they lock down the entire city grid.
I ushered Grace and Amara into the back seat and climbed into the passenger side.
Isabella hotwired the vehicle in less than ten seconds and slammed her foot on the gas pedal.
We tore out of the underground facility, bursting through a disguised garage door into the chaotic city streets.
As we sped away, Isabella handed me a small, encrypted digital tablet.
I intercepted a Syndicate communication thirty minutes ago, Julian.
May you like
Elena is not hiding anymore.
She just walked into a federal building downtown and surrendered the encrypted ledger to the FBI.
