Chapter 3 - The Flight from Oakwood Drive
The departure from the mansion was not a hurried rush of screaming voices; it was a silent, military-grade extraction.
Within five minutes of David's warning, three black SUVs with reinforced armor and tinted glass pulled into the subterranean garage beneath the estate. Viktor, a massive man with a jagged scar running from his ear to his collarbone, stood by the rear door of the lead vehicle. He held an assault rifle close to his chest, his eyes scanning the shadows of the concrete columns.
David guided me and Leo into the back seat of the middle SUV. The leather was cold, smelling of new car and high-end electronics. As soon as we were inside, Viktor slid into the front passenger seat, and the vehicle tore out of the garage, its tires screaming against the concrete.
"Turn off your phone, Clara," David commanded from the dark interior. He was holding a small, silver tracking device in his hand, watching a map of New York City flicker on a dashboard screen.
"I already did," I said, my hands shaking as I pulled the device from my pocket. "But... my roommates. They'll expect me back. If I don't show up—"
"Viktor’s team has already sent a message from your number," David said, his eyes never leaving the screen. "They told your roommates you took an emergency shift at the university press and would be staying at the library overnight. By tomorrow morning, your digital footprint will be completely wiped from the city."
"Wiped?" I whispered, a sudden wave of panic washing over me. "You're erasing me?"
"I am keeping you alive," he corrected. "The men who are tracking us are led by Nikolai Volkov. He was my father’s partner before the empire split. He believes the northern shipping routes belong to him, and he believes I am too soft to defend them because I spent the last two years trying to keep Leo out of the family business."
David turned his head to look at me. In the dim light of the dashboard, his dark eyes held an intensity that made me want to shrink back into the leather seats.
"I tried to be a businessman, Clara. I tried to build legitimate logistics firms, to give my son a life where he didn't have to look over his shoulder every time a car door slammed. But Nikolai does not want a businessman. He wants a war. And tonight, he decided to start it by targeting the only two people who can make me hesitate."
"Me and Leo," I said, the realization settling in my stomach like a stone.
Leo was already asleep, his head resting heavily in my lap, his fingers still wrapped tightly around Humphrey the dog. I gently smoothed a stray lock of dark hair from his forehead, my heart aching for the innocence he was losing with every mile we traveled away from his home.
Suddenly, Viktor leaned back, his voice tense. "Boss. We have a problem. Two vehicles just pulled out of the abandoned warehouse district near the docks. They’re running without lights. They’re matching our speed on the highway."
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David didn't panic. He reached into his coat pocket, pulled out a sleek, black semi-automatic pistol, and checked the chamber with a crisp, terrifying clack.
"Tell the lead car to engage the blocking protocol," David ordered, his voice like dry paper. "Clara, get down. Take Leo onto the floorboard. Now."
