Chapter 5 - The Safety Deposit Box
Nia wiped the tears from her face with the back of her dirty hand.
"It is in a vault at the First National Bank downtown," she said, her voice shaking.
"Why didn't you tell me I was a father?" Darius asked, the pain bleeding into his words.
"Because Marcus told me he would kill you both if I ever returned to Atlanta," she sobbed.
"I moved away, changed my name, and tried to hide him."
Darius pulled her into his arms, kissing the top of her head.
"I am so sorry I didn't believe you seven years ago," he whispered.
"We can fix the past later, right now we have to save our son," she replied fiercely.
They jumped into Darius's car and sped back toward the city limits.
The bank was a fortress of marble and glass in the financial district.
They walked inside, their disheveled appearances drawing stares from the wealthy patrons.
Nia approached the vault manager and handed him a heavy brass key.
"Box eight-one-four, please," she requested.
The manager led them down into the highly secured underground vault.
He unlocked the primary lock and stepped away to give them privacy.
Nia turned the brass key in the secondary lock and pulled the long metal drawer out.
Inside rested a single, silver flash drive.
It contained all the unalterable evidence of Marcus's corporate treason and money laundering.
Darius reached for it, but Nia suddenly slammed the metal box shut.
"We cannot give this to him, Darius," she stated firmly.
"It is the only way to get Leo back," Darius argued.
"Marcus is a psychopath, he will never leave a loose end," she explained.
"If we hand over the only leverage we have, he will kill all three of us."
Darius knew she was absolutely right.
"Then what do we do?" he asked desperately.
Nia reached into her apron pocket and pulled out her laptop.
"We are going to drain all of his offshore accounts before the deadline."
Suddenly, the heavy vault door behind them slammed shut, locking them inside the concrete room.
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Through the reinforced glass window, they saw the bank manager holding a phone.
He was looking directly at them, and he was dialing Marcus's number.
