Chapter 13 - The Roof
The freezing Manhattan wind whipped across the rooftop helipad, biting through Elena’s thin clothes. The deafening thwack-thwack-thwack of the helicopter blades drowned out Maya’s crying.
Marcus, the security guard from the lobby, was standing by the open door of the chopper, holding an assault rifle. Julian had called him the moment the breach happened.
“Get in, Elena! Now!” Marcus yelled, pulling her and Maya into the back seat of the luxurious corporate helicopter.
“We have to go back for Julian!” Elena screamed over the engine noise, grabbing Marcus’s tactical vest. “He’s hurt! Victor shot him!”
Marcus’s face hardened. He keyed his radio. “Alpha team, breach the penthouse. The CEO is down. Lethal force authorized.”
Marcus turned back to Elena. “My orders are to get you to the safehouse in the Hamptons. Julian’s private security is flooding the building right now. If we stay, you’re a target.”
The helicopter lifted off the roof, banking sharply over the glowing grid of the city. Elena stared down at the Sterling Spire, sobbing uncontrollably. The man who had saved them, the man who had given them a home, was bleeding out on the marble floor because of her.
She held Maya tightly, rocking her back and forth. Please let him live, she begged silently. Please.
Two agonizing hours later, the helicopter landed on the lawn of a massive, heavily fortified compound in the Hamptons. Armed guards escorted Elena and Maya inside.
A doctor was waiting to check Maya, offering her warm milk and a new stuffed animal. Elena paced the living room, gripping her phone, waiting for any news.
At 4:00 AM, the encrypted phone buzzed. Elena snatched it up.
“Hello?” she gasped.
“He’s alive,” a gruff voice said on the other end. It was Marcus. “Took a round to the shoulder and one to the thigh. He lost a lot of blood, but he’s in surgery at a private clinic. He’s going to make it, Elena.”
Elena collapsed onto the plush sofa, burying her face in her hands, letting out a ragged sob of pure, unadulterated relief.
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“What about Victor?” she asked, wiping her eyes.
“Victor is in federal custody,” Marcus replied grimly. “When our tactical team breached the penthouse, Victor tried to shoot his way out. He didn't make it to the elevator. Julian handed the FBI the flash drive with the audit files before they loaded him into the ambulance. It’s over, Elena. You’re safe.”
