Part 43
"Back door, Elena! Go!" I shouted, grabbing her arm and pulling her toward the small window at the rear of the motel room.
I smashed the glass with the butt of my rifle, clearing the sharp shards with a quick sweep of my sleeve before hoisting Elena through the opening.
She landed softly on the grassy embankment behind the building, turning around to help me as I scrambled through after her.
Behind us, the front door of the room was blasted completely off its hinges, the heavy thud of tactical boots echoing through the space we had occupied just seconds ago.
We sprinted down the muddy slope, heading toward a maze of active shipping containers and industrial warehouses that lined the Baltimore harbor.
The rain had started again, a freezing downpour that masked our footsteps but made the ground treacherous and slick.
As we ducked between two massive red containers, a figure suddenly stepped out from the shadows directly in front of us, a flashlight blinding my vision.
I raised my rifle, my finger tightening on the trigger, ready to end another life to save my daughter's.
"Wait! Don't shoot! It's me!" a voice hissed from behind the light.
The flashlight lowered, revealing the pale, sweaty face of Marcus—a rogue systems analyst who had once worked for Vanguard before going into hiding years ago.
He was a ghost in the criminal underworld, a man I had saved from one of Victor Sterling's cleanup crews a lifetime ago.
"I saw the network alert," Marcus panted, his hands shaking as he adjusted a heavy duffel bag on his shoulder. "I knew you’d use the biometric drive, and I knew they’d trap you here. You need to get out of the city, now."
"They have the exits blocked, Marcus," I said, my voice tight as I kept my eyes locked on the entrance of the alleyway. "They’re hunting us with everything they have."
Marcus reached into his bag, pulling out a sleek, unmarked black key fob and shoving it into my hand.
"There's an armored transport vehicle parked in bay four, completely wiped of any tracking tech," he said, pointing toward a dark warehouse at the end of the lot. "It has tactical gear, fresh identities, and a secured comms radio. Get the kid out of here. I'll loop the harbor surveillance cameras to give you a five-minute blind spot."
I looked at the key fob, then looked into Marcus's terrified but determined eyes.
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"Why are you risking your life for this?" I asked quietly.
Marcus let out a grim, humorless laugh as he backed away into the shadows. "Because Victor Sterling ruined my life, and you’re the only person alive with the balls to finish the job. Now move!"
