Chapter 3 - Escape from the Docks
The office was small, smelling of cheap whiskey and fear. In the corner, tied to a heavy wooden chair, was Evelyn Carter. Her face was bruised, her blouse torn, but her eyes—the exact shade of June's—flashed with fierce defiance.
Mercer scrambled backward, reaching for a backup gun hidden under the desk, but Nathan’s boot came down hard on his wrist. A sickening crack filled the room, followed by Mercer’s agonizing scream.
"Where are the keys?" Nathan growled, pinning Mercer to the floor.
"You're... you're dead, Russo," Mercer wheezed, his face pale with pain. "The buyers... they’re already in the city. You can't stop this."
Nathan didn't argue. He reached into Mercer's coat, retrieved a ring of keys, and kicked the man unconscious. In three strides, he was at Evelyn's side, cutting her bindings with a pocket knife.
"My girls..." she sobbed, grabbing Nathan's lapels the moment she was free. "Where are June and Jade? Did he hurt them?"
"They are safe. They are with Nora," Nathan said, his voice dropping to a reassuring, steady register. "They sent me to get you. Can you walk?"
"I'll crawl if I have to," Evelyn said, her voice shaking but determined.
Outside, the wail of police sirens began to cut through the storm. Mercer's backup had likely called in the disturbance, or the port authority had finally noticed the gunfire.
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"We need to go, now," Caleb said, appearing at the doorway, his arm bleeding from a graze wound. "The harbor police are entering the main gate."
Nathan guided Evelyn down the stairs, shielding her from the sight of the fallen men. They slipped out through the rear loading dock just as flashing red and blue lights began to paint the wet asphalt of the harbor entrance. They dived into Nathan’s waiting sedan, the tires roaring as Caleb hit the gas, leaving the docks behind in a cloud of exhaust and rain.
