Chapter 6 - Awakening the Titan"Get her up," I commanded, my voice cutting through the howl of the wind with an authority that left no room for debate.
Marcus pulled Dr. Evelyn Vance to her feet by her elbows. She didn't struggle. She simply watched me with a mixture of fear and profound sorrow. Julian was still whimpering on the slate, a pathetic heap of tailored wool and broken ambition.
"Caleb," Evelyn said softly, her voice carrying over the rotor wash of the idling chopper. "Killing me won't bring Audrey back. And destroying Julian won't erase the Syndicate. They are embedded in every branch of this city's government, the police department, and the international shipping ports. You can't fight them alone from a wheelchair."
I stared at her for a long, agonizing moment. Then, slowly, deliberately, I placed my hands on the armrests of my chair.
Marcus noticed first. His eyes widened in absolute disbelief. "Mr. Marino—what are you—"
I pushed down.
Every muscle in my core, my thighs, and my calves screamed in protest. For eight years, my brain had sent signals into the void, meeting only dead silence. But now, fueled by pure, unadulterated fury and the knowledge that my daughter was breathing under my roof, the neural pathways snapped back into place like a bridge reconnecting over a chasm.
My boots touched the cold slate.
I straightened my back. My knees shook violently, threatening to buckle beneath my weight, but I locked them. I stood at my full height—six feet and two inches of pure, unyielding vengeance.
Julian stopped whimpering. His jaw dropped so low I thought it might unhinge. He stared up at me as if he were looking at a ghost rising from a freshly dug grave.
"Who said I was alone?" I said, my voice echoing off the concrete walls of the helipad.
I took one step forward.
My right leg trembled, my boot scraping loudly against the slate, but I didn't fall. I took a second step. The pain was excruciating, like walking on hot coals mixed with shards of glass, but it was the best damn pain I had ever felt in my life. It meant I was alive.
"Marcus," I ordered, not breaking eye contact with Evelyn.
May you like
"Sir!" Marcus barked, snapping into a razor-sharp salute.
"Call every captain on the docks. Call every asset we have planted in the municipal government, the judicial system, and the corporate boards." A dangerous, razor-sharp smile spread across my face. "Tell them the Harbor King is back on his feet. And tonight, we clean the house from top to bottom."
