Chapter 13 - Poisoned Stethoscope
Dante moved faster than thought, throwing his body over mine and taking two suppressed rounds directly into his kevlar vest. The impact threw us backward against the crushed frame of the car, knocking the wind from his lungs.
“Don’t touch her!” Dante roared, coughing blood onto the shattered dashboard.
Valentina laughed—a cruel, hollow sound that cut through the roaring wind of the cliffside. “Look at you, Dante. The terrifying ruler of the Pacific Northwest, reduced to meat shielding a civilian. But I’m not here to kill you yet. That would be far too merciful.”
She gestured with her gloved finger, and her enforcers dragged Marcus from the vehicle, forcing him to his knees on the asphalt. Valentina reached into her coat, pulling out a small glass vial containing a glowing purple liquid.
“Six months ago, your medical records were breached in Seattle,” Valentina revealed, stepping closer to Dante as he struggled to stand. “Do you remember the IV fluid your doctor gave you right before you vanished into Italy? It wasn't saline, Dante. It was a synthetic neurotoxin called Neuro-7. It’s been lying dormant inside your nervous system for eighteen months.”
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My medical training kicked in, cold terror seizing my throat. Neuro-7 was a military-grade degenerative chemical weapon that slowly melted the synapses of the brain, causing sudden paralysis, cardiac arrest, and violent memory loss over a precise timeline.
“You have seventy-two hours before your heart forgets how to beat,” Valentina whispered, kneeling down to press the tip of her knife against Dante’s cheek scar. “If you want the cure, you will bring your daughter to the iron vaults in Vienna. If you try to run, you’ll watch your mind rot while your little girl watches you die.”
