Chapter 17 - THE COUNTERATTACK
Luke left no message.
His phone had been abandoned in the hotel library.
Security footage showed him carrying the certificate packet into a service elevator.
Ethan wanted to believe his friend had another plan.
Claire did not have the luxury of belief.
She had seventy-eight minutes before the bank released the sale.
Natalie traced Luke’s elevator access.
He exited beneath the ballroom and entered the old subway passage connected to the hotel.
The passage led east toward Pier 16.
Luke was taking the certificates to Richard.
Detective Ortiz divided the teams.
Federal agents moved toward the pier.
Claire remained at Mercer Grand to prepare the court filing with copies of the certificates.
The bank demanded originals.
Claire examined Laura’s microfilm again.
A notation appeared beside the ownership transfer.
ORIGINAL DUPLICATE HELD BY CITY REGISTRY.
Natalie contacted the registry.
The office did not open until nine.
Claire used her temporary authority to request an emergency release.
A clerk agreed to enter early if a judge approved it.
Ethan contacted the trust court.
The judge on emergency duty was the same woman Vivian had publicly humiliated at a Mercer gala three years earlier.
For once, Vivian’s cruelty worked against her.
The judge authorized the release.
Claire and Natalie raced downtown.
At Pier 16, Luke approached Richard alone.
Richard stood beside a black SUV.
Eleanor’s kidnappers waited nearby.
Luke held the packet above the river.
“Release every claim against Claire.”
Richard laughed.
“You think paper gives you power?”
“It gives you nothing once it is in the water.”
Richard stepped closer.
Luke admitted he had spent years envying Ethan.
Vivian recognized that weakness and used it.
She promised Luke influence, money, and a place beside the Mercer family.
Instead, she turned him into a witness against an innocent woman.
Richard offered him double the original payment.
Luke looked toward the river.
“I already sold my integrity once.”
He threw the packet.
Richard lunged toward it.
The envelope opened in the air.
Blank paper scattered across the water.
The real certificates remained beneath Luke’s coat.
Federal agents moved in.
Richard pulled a gun.
Luke froze.
A shot struck the pavement beside him.
Agents returned fire without hitting Richard.
He ran toward the SUV.
Detective Ortiz blocked the driver’s door.
Richard turned the weapon toward her.
Ethan appeared from behind a cargo container.
He had ignored the order to remain at the hotel.
Richard aimed at him.
“Thomas should have let me raise you.”
Ethan stood still.
“You never wanted a son.”
“You wanted an heir.”
Richard’s finger tightened.
Luke struck his arm.
The gun discharged into the river.
Agents forced Richard to the ground.
At eight nineteen, Luke handed the original certificates to Ortiz.
Claire was six blocks from the registry.
The bank’s deadline was eleven minutes away.
Then Natalie’s phone rang.
May you like
Vivian had escaped federal transport.
She was inside the city registry building.
