Chapter 48 - The Cumberland Countermeasure
The rain had turned into a torrential downpour by the time we reached the banks of the Cumberland River. The river churned like black glass, swollen by storm runoff, crashing against the concrete bulkheads of the Shelby Street docks.
Through the curtains of rain, the silhouette of the Sterling industrial rivercraft rose out of the dark water—a powerful, armored vessel designed to navigate shallow river systems with heavy cargo. Its twin diesel engines roared to life, churning the water into white foam.
On the wooden pier, Eleanor Sterling stood sheltered beneath an umbrella held by her personal bodyguard, watching the final crates being secured aboard. She was checking a gold pocket watch, impatient and ruthless.
David and I moved through the shadows of the freight containers, our footsteps masked by the roaring river and the downpour. Julian flanked us from the left, guiding us through the maze of commercial docks he had studied as a child.
"Wait for my signal," David whispered, lining up a shot on the vessel's primary fuel intake valve from fifty yards away. "One shot into that high-pressure manifold, and those engines will seize before they clear the bridge."
"Don't shoot the boat yet," I said softly, spotting something moving on the upper deck. "Look at the crates, David. Those aren't documents. Those are the original transport manifests from our father’s company from twenty years ago. The evidence that proves our family was innocent all along."
"Then we take the pier," David said, his eyes burning with lethal determination.
Just as we prepared to move, a sudden beam of blinding light exploded from the riverbank behind us. A megaphone echoed over the water, cutting through the storm:
*"Eleanor Sterling! This is the United States Marshals Service! Lay down your arms and step away from the vessel!"*
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Eleanor didn't panic. She slowly turned toward the light, then looked up at the catwalks above the pier where her mercenary snipers were concealed. She raised her right hand and made a chilling, downward slicing motion.
Ambush.
