Chapter 4 - The Underground Doctor
Gabriel navigated the armored SUV through the darkest, most dangerous alleys of Chicago.
Claire directed him to a crumbling butcher shop hidden beneath the elevated train tracks.
They pounded heavily on the rusted metal door in the back alley.
An older man covered in surgical tattoos opened the door, his eyes widening when he saw Claire.
"Elena, you should not be back in this city," the doctor warned her in a harsh whisper.
"I need your help, Doc, the baby has been poisoned with synthetic hemlock," Claire begged.
The doctor quickly ushered them into a massive underground medical clinic.
He immediately hooked baby Eli up to a sophisticated dialysis machine to slow the spreading toxin.
Gabriel pulled Claire aside, demanding to know why the doctor called her Elena.
Claire looked at the floor, tears finally brimming in her beautiful eyes.
"My real name is Elena Volkov, and I was raised by Cross's syndicate to be a killer," she confessed.
She explained that she ran away two years ago to escape the endless cycle of violence.
She chose to work for Gabriel because his corporate empire was the only place Cross feared to look.
Gabriel gently reached out and wiped a raindrop from her bruised cheek.
He realized he did not care about her dark past or the blood on her hands.
He only cared about the fierce, brave woman standing in front of him right now.
Suddenly, the heavy reinforced doors of the clinic locked with a loud, electronic click.
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The underground doctor slowly backed away from them, holding a bundle of cash in his trembling hands.
The concrete walls of the clinic began to violently shake as a heavy breaching charge was detonated outside.
