Chapter 14 - The Ransom CallThe digital clock on the living room wall flashed 4:45 AM. Nathan paced the floor like a caged tiger, his face pale, veins bulging at his temples. Liam was furiously tapping away on a tactical laptop, trying to trace the ping from the kidnapper's call.
"No luck," Liam muttered, slamming his fist on the coffee table. "They’re routing the signal through twelve different satellite relays in international waters. We can't get a fixed GPS lock."
The phone rang again. Nathan snatched it off the table and answered instantly.
"If you hurt a single hair on their heads, I will hunt down every single person connected to this syndicate and skin them alive," Nathan roared into the mic.
"Calm down, grieving widower," a smooth, chillingly polite voice answered. It wasn't the distorted voice from before—it was Judge Robert Thorne himself. "Violence is so crude. I prefer negotiation. You have the flash drive and the journals from the basement bunker. Bring them to the abandoned lighthouse at Blackwood Cove by sunrise—alone. Hand them over, and your children walk free. Call the police, and well... you’ll find your children where you found your first wife’s car."
The line went dead with a sharp click.
Nathan froze. Blackwood Cove. The exact place where Elena’s car had plunged into the freezing ocean two years ago.
He looked at Liam. "Get the spare Glock from the safe. We're going hunting."
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"Nathan, it's a trap," Liam warned. "If you go alone, they'll execute you and the kids."
"I'm not going alone," Nathan said, grabbing his car keys with deadly resolve. "You’re going to flank the cliffs from the west ridge. But wait for my signal before you make a move."
