Chapter 20 - The Whispers in the Fog
Sirens began to wail in the distance, their high-pitched echoes cutting through the dense mountain forest.
Julianne emerged from behind the concrete pillar, clutching baby Clara tight against her chest.
Tears streamed down her face, but for the first time, her shoulders were unburdened by terror.
Sterling spat blood onto the floor, glaring up at me with venomous malice.
"You think... you think you won, don't you, Maya?" he wheezed, a sinister smile creeping across his lips.
"You think David Vance died because he was a righteous cop?"
"He wasn't trying to bring me down to save the law."
"He stole half the bonds from my offshore account to protect your mother."
"Ask Marcus Miller why he pulled you over on Highway 41 at midnight."
"Ask him who paid for your academy tuition."
My blood ran cold.
Before I could demand what he meant, the sudden, high-intensity beam of a helicopter spotlight pierced the foundry roof.
The deafening thrum of heavy rotor blades rattled the rusted corrugated sheets above our heads.
Down the access road, a convoy of black tactical vans—without police markings—screeched to a halt outside the main entrance.
Men in unmarked black combat gear spilled out, leveling laser sights through the open doorway.
A single red dot danced across the center of my chest.
A voice amplified through a tactical megaphone boomed through the shattered foundry:
"Agent Maya Vance, stand down and step away from Senator Sterling immediately."
"By order of Federal Task Force Omega, you are all under arrest for treason."
I looked at Julianne, whose face went paper white in sheer horror.
I looked at Sterling, who let out a cold, triumphant chuckle.
May you like
Then, a single high-caliber sniper round tore through the corrugated wall, striking the console beside my head in a spray of sparks.
The lights inside the foundry abruptly died, plunging us into total, suffocating darkness.
