Chapter 5 - The Inside Man and the TrapThe secure medical bay on the thirty-fifth floor of the Mercer tower smelled of sterile gauze and antiseptic.
Claire stood beside the examination table while a company medic dressed the bullet graze on Shaw’s shoulder. Shaw sat through the procedure without flinching, his jaw set in a hard, angry line.
Adrian stood near the doorway, staring out through the observation glass at the flashing red lights of police cruisers far below on the street. The municipal police had been notified, but Adrian knew better than to trust city authorities—not when half the precinct was on Ross Maritime’s payroll.
“The intrusion code used to bypass the freight shaft was a master override,” Shaw said, his voice gravelly from pain. “Only three people in this organization have clearance for that code: me, head of logistics Marcus Vance, and—”
“And my personal chief of staff, Julian Hayes,” Adrian finished quietly.
“Hayes?” Claire looked up from the table. “The man who handled the auction invitations? The man who set up the schedule for the Hudson Museum gala?”
“The very same,” Adrian turned, his eyes dark with cold fury. “Evelyn Ross didn't just guess that I would be at the museum that night. Hayes leaked my security itinerary to her hit squad. The plan was supposed to eliminate me before I could finalize the acquisition of the Brooklyn shipping terminals. When I used you as a diversion, the timeline fell apart, and Hayes has been trying to cover his tracks ever since by putting a target on your back.”
“And my father?” Claire’s voice trembled as the realization hit her. “If Hayes is working for Ross, what happened to the extraction team sent to get my father?”
Adrian’s phone buzzed violently in his pocket. He pulled it out, glanced at the encrypted screen, and went completely still.
“Boss,” Shaw said, sensing the shift in the room. “What is it?”
“The extraction unit never reached the boarding house in Queens,” Adrian said, every syllable dripping with lethal ice. “Hayes intercepted the dispatch log. Your father was taken by Ross’s men three hours ago, Claire. They’re holding him at an abandoned warehouse pier in Red Hook.”
Claire felt the room spin. Her knees buckled, and she would have hit the floor if Adrian hadn't moved with lightning speed, catching her in his arms and pulling her firmly against his chest.
“No,” she whispered, burying her face in the lapel of his shirt. “No, this is my fault. If I hadn't gone to that auction... if I hadn't kissed you—”
“Listen to me,” Adrian interrupted, his hands gripping her arms firmly, forcing her to look up into his fierce, unyielding gaze. “Your father is alive because Evelyn Ross wants leverage against me. She wants me to walk into Red Hook unarmed, surrender my shipping interests, and sign over my entire portfolio in exchange for your family.”
“Then we go to the police—!”
“There are no police, Claire,” Adrian said flatly. “This is a war for the harbor. And I am going to end it tonight.”
He turned to Shaw.
“Prep the tactical transport in sub-level three. Pack heavy. We’re going to Red Hook.”
May you like
“Adrian, you can’t go walking into a trap alone,” Shaw protested, wincing as he moved his injured shoulder. “Ross will have a dozen snipers waiting.”
“I’m not going alone,” Adrian replied, looking down at Claire with a strange, fierce intensity that made her breath catch. “Claire is coming with me.”
