Chapter 2 - The Sniper in the Dark
The heavy silence inside the armored SUV was suffocating.
Sadie stared at the empty plastic sleeve in absolute disbelief.
She frantically flipped through the other compartments of the portfolio, hoping the sketch had merely slipped out.
Callum grabbed her wrists to stop her frantic movements.
He told her in a voice devoid of all emotion that the Marcanos had played her.
They had orchestrated the mugging solely to swap the authentic artwork for nothing.
Sadie felt the blood drain from her face as the reality of the situation crashed over her.
That sketch was worth four million dollars to Callum’s buyers.
More importantly, it was the key to a massive laundering operation he had spent months building.
Callum ordered the driver to reroute to a secure safe house on the north side of the city.
He knew the Marcanos would not stop at stealing the artwork.
If they knew Sadie was authenticating pieces for the Russo family, she was a walking liability.
They arrived at a nondescript luxury apartment building overlooking the lake.
Callum ushered Sadie through the private underground garage and into a dedicated elevator.
The penthouse safe house was sparse, cold, and entirely bulletproof.
Callum poured a glass of whiskey and slammed it down in front of her.
He demanded to know everything the men in the alley had said to her.
Sadie’s eyes filled with tears as she finally admitted the terrifying truth.
She confessed that the men had cornered her and shown her a live video feed on a phone.
The video showed her younger brother, Liam, tied to a chair in a dark basement.
They told her they would put a bullet in Liam’s head unless she handed over the portfolio.
Callum’s expression remained completely unreadable as he processed this betrayal.
He walked toward the floor-to-ceiling window to look out over the glittering city skyline.
He was just about to ask her why the Marcanos wanted that specific sketch so badly.
May you like
A deafening crack echoed through the quiet apartment.
A high-caliber sniper bullet shattered the reinforced glass, missing Callum’s head by less than an inch.
