Chapter 7 - The Unlikely Ally
The explosion filled the garage with thick, blinding smoke and the smell of sulfur.
Jax rolled to his feet instantly, drawing his sidearm and aiming it directly at the shattered doorway.
I pulled my own weapon from my ankle holster, taking cover behind the metal workbench.
A lone figure stepped through the smoke, hands raised high in the air.
It was the woman in the navy coat from the restaurant.
She stepped into the dim light, slowly pulling a gold badge from her pocket and tossing it onto the floor.
"Do not shoot," she called out calmly.
"I am Special Agent Miller, Naval Criminal Investigative Service."
Jax kept his gun leveled at her chest, glancing back at me for confirmation.
"She was taking pictures of Adrian at the restaurant," I confirmed, stepping out from behind the bench.
"I thought Adrian's men grabbed you outside," I said.
Miller smiled grimly, rubbing a bruised knuckle.
"They tried, but I dropped three of them and left a fake camera in the blood to buy some time."
"I have been tracking Adrian's weapons smuggling ring for six months."
"I tracked your burner phone signal because I need your help, Admiral."
I lowered my weapon, signaling Jax to do the same.
"Adrian has my brother hostage, and he framed me for murder," I told her.
"Where is the proof we need to take him down?"
Miller pulled a rolled-up architectural blueprint from her coat and spread it across the hood of the truck.
"The master ledger is locked inside a biometric safe in Adrian's private quarters on the destroyer."
"It contains the names of every corrupt official, the location of his hostages, and the foreign buyers."
I stared at the blueprint, realizing exactly what we had to do.
"We have to board that ship," I stated.
Miller checked her watch, her expression turning incredibly grim.
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"Then we need to move right now."
"That destroyer is scheduled to depart for international waters in exactly forty-five minutes."
