Chapter 5 - A Bullet in the Fog
Before Lena could process Vance's words, a blinding wall of headlights slammed into them from the end of the pier. Three matte-black SUVs roared out of the fog, their tires shrieking against the asphalt as they formed a semi-circle, trapping Lena and Vance against the edge of the freezing water.
Car doors slammed open simultaneously. Armed men in tactical gear poured out, their assault rifles raised, sweeping the area with laser sights.
And right down the center, flanked by two towering bodyguards, walked Marco Lombardi.
He wore an immaculate charcoal overcoat, his silver-streaked hair swept back neatly against the damp wind. His dark eyes flicked from Detective Vance to Lena, resting finally on the terrified girl shivering in her mud-stained sneakers.
"Well, well," Marco said, his voice carrying effortlessly over the crashing waves. "Detective Vance. I always wondered which rat in the precinct was leaking departmental files to a dead man's student."
Vance didn't flinch. He slowly pulled his hands out of his pockets, raising them lazily in the air. "Lombardi. I figured you'd trace the burner signal eventually. But you're too late. She already gave me the drive."
Lena’s breath caught in her throat. I didn't give him anything! she wanted to scream, but terror locked her jaw.
Marco chuckled, a low, humorless sound that sent a shiver down her spine. "Detective, do you really take me for a fool? If she had given you the drive, you wouldn't still be standing here trying to negotiate your exit. You would have put a bullet in her head and vanished into the harbor."
Marco shifted his gaze to Lena, his expression softening just a fraction—a terrifying contrast to the raw power radiating from him. "Dr. Ortiz. You saved my dog. That makes you a very valuable person in my world. But running from me? That was a mistake."
"I didn't mean to..." Lena stammered, her back pressed hard against the cold wooden crates. "I just wanted to stay alive. You murdered my professor!"
Marco stopped dead in his tracks. A heavy, suffocating silence fell over the pier, broken only by the rhythmic crashing of the dark water below.
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"Murdered Dr. Guzman?" Marco repeated, his brow furrowing in genuine confusion. "Child, I didn't kill your professor. In fact, Dr. Guzman was performing secret surgeries in my own estate's medical wing three days before he died. Someone else wanted him silenced. And if you have that flash drive... they're coming for you next."
Before anyone could react, a deafening crack split the night air.
