Chapter 4 - The DNA HeistGabriel paused, his hand still gripping the handle of the knife. "What are you talking about?"
" spent months looking into Father's old files!" Julian wept, clutching his impaled hand. "Leo isn't just your son, Gabriel! He's the biological heir to the Romanov trust—the offshore vault containing three billion dollars in untraceable gold! The trust can only be unlocked with a direct lineage DNA sample. They didn't want to kill him... they needed his blood to authorize the transfer!"
Emily gasped. The pieces fell into place with terrifying speed. The kidnapping wasn't a hit—it was an extraction. And the shooter in the park hadn't aimed for Leo; he had aimed for the bodyguard who was protecting the boy's medical records.
"And where is the sample now?" Gabriel asked, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper.
"They... they got it," Julian choked out. "During the struggle in the alley... when Thomas was shot... they scraped Leo's arm. The transfer is processing right now at the International Banking Vault in Manhattan. In twenty minutes, the trust opens, and the money vanishes into offshore shell accounts."
Gabriel pulled the knife free with a sickening sound. Julian collapsed against the table, sobbing and clutching his wounded hand.
"Vance," Gabriel said, wiping the blade on a cloth napkin. "Lock my brother in the holding cell. If he bleeds out, let him."
"Yes, Boss."
Gabriel turned to Emily. His expression was no longer just calculation; it was urgency.
"I need you," Gabriel said directly to her.
"Me?" Emily blinked, terrified. "Why me?!"
"The International Banking Vault requires a secondary physical witness for any emergency freeze on high-value accounts—a citizen with no prior criminal or mob connections. You are the only person in this building whose name is completely clean."
"If I go with you, I'm putting a target on my back forever," Emily said, stepping back.
Gabriel looked down at her, his dark eyes fierce and intense. "If you come with me, I will clear your mother's name, buy her the best medical care in the world, and guarantee your safety for the rest of your life. If you stay here, my enemies will find you the second I walk out that door."
May you like
Emily looked at the small room where Leo was sleeping peacefully. She thought of her mother, sick and helpless in a hospital bed. Then she looked at Gabriel Mercer—a monster to the world, but a father fighting for his son.
"Get me a coat," Emily said softly. "Let's go."
