My brother’s wedding was supposed to be one of the happiest nights of our lives / Chapter 22 / 70

Chapter 22 - The Ghost in the Study

We hit the door of the utility corridor at a full sprint. The air in the upper terminal smelled of ozone, burning rubber, and sulfur. The strobe of the fire alarms painted the mahogany-paneled walls in grotesque shades of crimson and black.

Through the haze, the sound of gunfire echoed from the administrative wing. Three sharp cracks, followed by the sickening thud of wood splintering under a heavy battering ram.

"Marcus!" I screamed, ignoring David’s warning gesture.

We rounded the corner into the private study’s ante-room just in time to witness the devastation. The antique oak double doors had been blasted off their hinges. Two private security guards lay motionless on the marble floor. Slumped against the mahogany bookshelf, clutching a bleeding shoulder, was Marcus.

"Sarah..." Marcus wheezed, his face pale, his service weapon empty and smoking on the floor beside him. "I... I tried. They had flashbangs. They weren't after the documents here... they only wanted him."

"Where is he?" My vision blurred with blinding panic. I dropped to my knees beside Marcus, gripping his jacket. "Marcus, where is Leo?!"

"North gate... track four," Marcus gasped, coughing weakly. "A black Escalade with tinted plates. They said... tell Sarah the exchange happens on the Cumberland overpass, or the boy goes into the river."

David checked Marcus's pulse and applied a tourniquet with rapid military precision. "He'll live if paramedics get here within fifteen minutes. Frank!" David barked into his radio. "Frank, do you read me?"

Static hissed over the channel, then Frank’s frantic voice cut through. "David! They broke through the perimeter gate! Two vehicles are heading north toward the industrial spur line! I'm pinned down by sniper fire near the dispatch tower!"

"Stay under cover," David commanded, hauling me to my feet. "Sarah and I are taking the freight interceptor on track two. Cut the signal lights to track four. Trap them in the rail corridor!"

"Leo..." I whispered, my heart tearing in two. The floor was strewn with his colored pencils and a half-finished drawing of our old house—the one we were supposed to return to once this nightmare was over.

David gripped my shoulders, forcing me to meet his gaze. His eyes were fierce, steady, and utterly unshakable. "Listen to me, Sarah. Your brother and his backers think we’re cornered. They think you'll crumble. But they don't know who you are. We are not letting them take him. Do you understand me? We finish this tonight."

I looked at the drawing on the floor, wiped the cold tears from my cheeks, and gripped the steel box with white knuckles.