Chapter 7 - The Price of Loyalty|
Vincent wanted to move immediately.
Rocco stopped him before he reached the elevator.
“We have a location, not a plan.”
“My plan is to get Daniel out.”
“And if Marcus is waiting for you?”
“Then he’ll see me.”
Rocco lowered his voice.
“Boss, that is exactly what he wants.”
Vincent’s hands tightened around his wheelchair rims.
For years, he had been the man who chose the time and place of every confrontation. Now someone else had chosen both for him, and the temptation to charge straight into the trap was almost unbearable.
Nora stood nearby, staring at Daniel’s photograph.
“Rocco is right,” she said.
Vincent turned toward her.
“You want to wait?”
“I want my brother alive when we find him.”
The words silenced him.
Detective Mitchell arrived twenty minutes later with two officers and a tactical team. The warehouse was on a service road outside the city, surrounded by vacant industrial buildings and a fence that had collapsed in several places.
The police had enough information to justify an urgent search, but the situation was complicated by the possibility of armed suspects and the connection to Vincent’s organization.
“You stay behind the perimeter,” Mitchell told Vincent.
Vincent’s expression hardened.
“I’m not leaving without Daniel.”
“You are not leading this operation.”
“I didn’t say I was.”
“You look like you’re preparing to argue.”
“I’m preparing to remember your name.”
Mitchell didn’t blink.
“Then remember this: if you interfere, you could jeopardize the rescue and your own case.”
Nora touched Vincent’s shoulder.
It was a small gesture, but it stopped his next sentence.
“She’s right,” Nora said quietly. “Let them do their jobs.”
Vincent looked at her hand, then at her face.
Finally, he nodded.
The team moved toward the warehouse.
Minutes passed.
Every sound seemed amplified: boots against gravel, radio static, the distant groan of a truck on the highway.
Vincent sat in the vehicle beside Nora, watching the building through the windshield.
Then a shout echoed from inside.
Nora surged forward.
Vincent caught her wrist.
“Wait.”
She turned on him, terrified.
“Don’t tell me to wait.”
“I’m telling you not to run into a room full of armed men.”
She looked as if she wanted to strike him.
Then a voice came over the radio.
“One adult male located. Conscious. Medical assistance requested.”
Nora covered her mouth.
“Daniel?”
The officer repeated the name.
“Daniel Bennett. We have him.”
She began to cry.
Vincent released her wrist.
“Go,” he said.
Nora hurried toward the paramedics, escorted by an officer. Vincent watched her reach Daniel and kneel beside his stretcher. Her brother’s face was swollen, but he was alive.
For several minutes, Vincent allowed himself to feel relief.
Then Detective Mitchell returned.
“We found Marcus Dane.”
“Where?”
“Not here.”
Vincent’s expression changed.
“Then who did you find?”
“A man named Peter Sloane. He was in a side office with two security contractors. One of them tried to destroy a laptop.”
“Did you recover it?”
“Yes. We also found financial records, forged medical transfer documents, and communications involving Bellweather Consulting.”
Vincent leaned forward.
“Where is Marcus?”
“We believe he left shortly before the search began.”
The relief vanished.
Marcus had known they were coming.
Someone had warned him.
Mitchell studied Vincent.
“Does he have access to your security network?”
“He helped design it.”
“Then assume he knows what we know.”
She handed Vincent a printed photograph recovered from the warehouse. It showed Marcus shaking hands with Peter Sloane outside a parking garage. The date was three months before Vincent’s shooting.
On the back was a handwritten note:
Final approval required. The boss must not survive with control intact.
Vincent stared at the words.
“The shooting was planned to kill me?”
“We can’t establish that from this alone,” Mitchell said. “But it strongly suggests the attack was connected to a coordinated effort.”
Vincent’s throat tightened.
He had spent eight months believing he had survived a random act of violence. Now he had to consider that someone he trusted had arranged it.
Nora returned after the paramedics took Daniel to a hospital for evaluation. Her eyes were red, but her voice was firm.
“Daniel said something before they sedated him.”
Vincent looked at her.
“What?”
“He recognized Peter. He said Peter had visited the construction site the morning of his accident. Daniel believes Peter was there to threaten the supervisor who later disappeared.”
“Anthony Vale,” Vincent murmured.
Nora nodded.
“Daniel also said Marcus came to see him two weeks ago. He told Daniel that if he wanted help paying for treatment, he should stop asking questions about the accident.”
Vincent’s expression went cold.
“Marcus knew about your brother.”
“He knew about the lawsuit, the medical bills, everything. He offered Daniel money to keep quiet.”
“And when Daniel refused, he was taken.”
Nora looked at the warehouse.
“I want Marcus to answer for this.”
“So do I.”
She studied Vincent.
“But I don’t want you turning this into an excuse to become the man you were before.”
He stared at her.
“What do you want me to be?”
“Someone who can tell the difference between justice and revenge.”
The words hurt because he knew how often he had confused the two.
Before he could answer, Rocco approached with a phone in his hand.
“Boss. Marcus called.”
Vincent held out his hand.
Rocco gave him the phone.
Marcus’s voice came through, smooth and familiar.
“Vincent. I hear you’ve been busy.”
“You kidnapped an innocent man.”
“I arranged a conversation.”
“You threatened his life.”
“I gave you a choice.”
Vincent’s voice dropped.
“You have ten seconds to tell me where you are.”
Marcus laughed softly.
“You still think you’re giving orders. That’s what I find fascinating.”
Then he said something that made Vincent’s blood run cold.
“Ask Nora what her brother saw the morning Anthony Vale disappeared. Ask her why Vale’s final report carries your signature.”
The line went dead.
Nora stood motionless beside him.
Vincent turned slowly.
“What report?”
She looked frightened for the first time since he had known her.
“I don’t know.”
But before he could ask another question, Detective Mitchell returned from the warehouse holding a sealed evidence bag.
Inside it was a document bearing Vincent Bellori’s signature.
May you like
The date was the day before his shooting.
And the document authorized a payment to the company that owned the car used in the ambush.
