Chapter 4 - Secrets Under the Floorboards
The basement of the harbor warehouse was a damp, concrete bunker that smelled of stagnant lake water and rot. Caleb led the way, his flashlight beam cutting through the heavy mist that clung to the floor. Nathan followed, dragging a semi-conscious Grant Mercer by his lapels, his expensive suit tearing against the rough concrete stairs.
"Down here, boss," Caleb said, pausing in front of a heavy iron bulkhead door secured with an old mechanical combination lock. "The thermal imaging didn't pick this up because it's lined with lead and reinforced earth. It used to be an old prohibition vault."
Nathan threw Grant to the floor. "Open it."
Grant coughed up a mouthful of blood, his chest heaving. "I... I don't have the sequence. Only the primary courier has it. He’s due in an hour."
Nathan didn’t waste words. He looked at Caleb, who immediately pulled a portable plasma torch from his tactical pack. The bright blue spark lit up the dark basement, casting long, monstrous shadows against the walls. The smell of burning iron filled the air as Caleb went to work on the hinges of the vault door.
As the metal began to glow cherry red, Nathan knelt beside Grant. "You said Daniel Carter used his family as collateral. Where is he?"
Grant let out a wet, ragged laugh. "Daniel? He’s at the bottom of the lake, Russo. He tried to back out at the last second when he realized what 'shipment' meant. He thought he could run to the feds. We stopped him before he reached the federal plaza. The mother thinks he just abandoned them. It was easier to keep her compliant that way."
A deep, burning anger settled into Nathan’s chest—not the explosive kind that made a man scream, but the cold, calculating fury that made him lethal. He thought of June and Jade waiting at Nora’s shop, counting the minutes, hoping for a father who was already dead and a mother who was locked behind iron doors.
With a loud, metallic groan, the heavy vault hinges gave way. Caleb kicked the iron door inward. It hit the concrete floor with a deafening thud.
Inside the vault, sitting on a rusted metal frame bed, was a woman. Her clothes were torn, her hair matted, and her face pale from days of confinement in the dark. But when the light hit her eyes, Nathan saw the exact same defiant spark he had seen in June back at the cafe. This was Evelyn Carter.
"Who are you?" she whispered, shielding her eyes from the flashlight beam, her voice raw from screaming. She looked past Nathan and saw Grant bleeding on the floor. A sudden, sharp intake of breath told Nathan she knew exactly who the monster was.
"Your daughters are safe," Nathan said directly, stepping into the vault and lowering his flashlight so it didn't blind her. "June and Jade. They ran into my cafe. They're with my people now."
Evelyn’s entire body began to shake, but she didn’t cry. She stood up on unstable legs, her hands gripping the edge of the bed frame. "Are they... are they hurt? Did that animal touch them?"
"They're fine," Nathan assured her, offering his hand. "They’re warm, they’ve been fed, and they’re waiting for you. But we need to move now. This place is about to become very loud."
Evelyn took his hand. Her grip was surprisingly fierce. "Daniel... my husband..."
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"We'll talk about Daniel later," Nathan said gently but firmly, guiding her out of the vault. "Right now, we get you away from the water."
Caleb suddenly tensed, his hand going to his earpiece. "Boss, we've got headlights entering the primary yard. Three black SUVs. The courier just arrived early."
