Chapter 13 - The Ghost from the Past
The temperature in the loft seemed to drop ten degrees. Roman’s pale eyes hardened into chips of arctic ice, his jaw clenching so tightly a muscle jumped in his cheek.
“They tracked you through your brother,” Roman stated, his voice a low, lethal hum.
“St. Jude’s was supposed to be secure,” Nora whispered, her hands trembling slightly as she clutched the edge of the desk. The cold, analytical composure she had maintained through every crisis vanished, replaced by the raw, protective terror of an older sister whose family was targeted because of her past. “I cleared his records under an alias. No one outside the military intelligence database should have known where he was receiving treatment.”
“Military intelligence databases are porous when governments change hands or officers go freelance,” Roman said, walking over to the wall safe and pulling out a heavy, matte-black Sig Sauer pistol, checking the magazine with practiced speed. “Who commanded your unit in 2022, Nora?”
“Colonel Marcus Vance,” she said, her voice tightening. “He was the one who ordered the unlawful wiretap on civilian communication relays in northern Syria. When I refused to transcribe the intercept, he threatened to bury my career. When I leaked the internal memo to internal oversight, he promised he would find a way to make me pay.”
Roman slid the pistol into his shoulder holster, his coat settling smoothly over the fabric. “Colonel Vance retired from active service eighteen months ago. Rumor has it he went into private security consulting in Eastern Europe, working as a fixer for offshore intelligence syndicates.”
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“He’s not a fixer,” Nora said, standing up from her desk, her eyes flashing with cold, focused fury. “He’s a predator who doesn't like loose ends. And he thinks he can use Tommy to get to me.”
Roman reached out, his hand wrapping firmly around her arm, stopping her before she could cross the room. “We don’t panic, Nora. We calculate. If Vance wants to play shadow games in my city, we’ll invite him to a place where he can’t hide behind a diplomatic passport.”
