Chapter 15 - The Trade
Torres wanted to control the exchange.
I wanted to tear through the city until I found Caleb myself.
Henry wanted only one thing.
“Don’t let him hurt Rebecca.”
I looked at my son.
After everything she had done to him, he still said it.
“Buddy, she hurt you.”
“I know.”
His eyes dropped.
“But Mr. Caleb scares her too.”
Children notice the cracks adults train themselves not to see.
I kissed his forehead.
“You stay with Uncle Nathan.”
“Dad?”
“Yeah?”
“Come back this time.”
The words nearly broke me.
“I will.”
Caleb sent instructions to bring the original flash drive to an old marina on the Hudson before midnight. No police. No backup.
Torres almost smiled when she read that part.
“People who write ‘no police’ always think they invented it.”
The drive in my pocket was a copy.
The real one remained in evidence.
I wore a wire under my shirt.
Victor sat in an unmarked vehicle two blocks away, furious that Torres would not let him come closer.
At 11:48, I walked onto the marina dock alone.
Rebecca sat tied to a chair inside an empty boathouse.
Caleb stood behind her.
He looked older than he had that morning.
Or maybe I had finally stopped seeing the loyal employee he had pretended to be.
“You came,” he said.
“Let her go.”
“The drive.”
I held it up.
Rebecca shook her head hard.
“Don’t.”
Caleb pressed the gun to the side of her neck.
“Quiet.”
I took one step closer.
“You killed Sarah.”
His expression barely moved.
“You don’t know what happened.”
“I heard her recording.”
For the first time, anger flashed across his face.
“She should have stayed out of business she didn’t understand.”
My heartbeat thundered.
The wire was catching every word.
“What did you do to her car?”
Rebecca began to cry.
Caleb stared at me.
Then he smiled.
“I didn’t cut the brakes, if that’s what you want to hear.”
“Then what?”
“I followed her.”
My jaw clenched.
“In the rain. I pulled alongside her. I wanted the drive. She panicked.”
“You forced her off the road.”
“No. Sarah jerked the wheel.”
Rebecca screamed, “You hit her car!”
Caleb’s head snapped toward her.
That was enough.
I saw a red laser dot appear on his chest.
Torres had a shot.
Then Caleb grabbed Rebecca, fired into the ceiling, and kicked open the rear door.
May you like
They disappeared onto the dock.
A boat engine roared to life.
