Chapter 10 - THE WATERFRONT
The warehouse smelled of rust and salt water.
Emma parked two blocks away and walked the rest.
She carried a small black bag containing the deeds and a flash drive with the account codes.
Her other hand held the suppressed pistol she had taken from Frank six months earlier.
She had never returned it.
The side door stood unlocked.
She stepped inside.
A single work light hung from a chain.
Isabella waited beneath it.
Ethan sat in the chair ten feet behind her.
His wrists were raw from the ropes.
A thin man with a scarred jaw stood near the boy.
He held a syringe.
Isabella’s voice was almost gentle.
“Place the bag on the floor and step back.”
Emma set the bag down.
She did not step back.
“Let him go first.”
Isabella laughed softly.
“You still think you have leverage.”
She nodded to the scarred man.
He pressed the needle against Ethan’s neck.
Emma raised the pistol.
“Touch him and you both die.”
Isabella’s eyes narrowed.
“You won’t risk the shot. Not with the boy so close.”
A second figure stepped from the shadows behind Emma.
Cold metal pressed against the base of her skull.
Frank Vance’s voice was low and amused.
“Drop it, housekeeper.”
Emma’s finger stayed on the trigger.
Frank pressed harder.
“I said drop it.”
She let the pistol fall.
It clattered on the concrete.
Isabella walked forward and kicked it away.
“Good girl.”
She opened the bag and checked the documents.
May you like
Then she looked up.
“Kill her.”
