CHAPTER 12: THE FEDERAL SNARE
The rusted steel door of the control cabin exploded off its ancient hinges.
A blinding flashbang grenade skittered across the dark floor, stopping inches from Vance’s boots.
Vance booted the explosive device back through the open doorway a split second before it detonated.
The deafening explosion ripped through the freezing coastal air outside the cabin.
“Move right now,” Vance roared, grabbing Sarah by her soaked uniform collar.
He shoved her and Lily through the shattered glass window on the opposite side of the rusted control room.
Sarah tumbled onto the freezing metal deck, shielding her daughter with her bruised body.
“Target is moving toward the starboard cranes,” an armored FBI agent yelled, firing his heavy assault rifle blindly into the fog.
High-caliber bullets sparked against the rusted shipping containers surrounding them.
Vance returned fire immediately, his heavy handgun roaring as he covered their desperate retreat.
One of the heavily armored agents collapsed backward, clutching a shattered knee joint in agony.
“Crawl under the massive yellow pipes,” Vance commanded, shoving Sarah beneath a heavy industrial pipeline.
The freezing ocean water pooled deeply on the rusted deck, soaking through their freezing clothes once again.
Would you willingly crawl through freezing darkness if the alternative was taking a federal bullet to the chest?
Sarah dragged Lily fiercely through the tight metal crawlspace, ignoring the sharp rust tearing at her skin.
They finally emerged behind a towering stack of decaying metal shipping crates on the far edge of the barge.
“We are trapped at the edge,” Sarah panicked, staring directly down at the churning black ocean below.
“We are not trapped,” Vance breathed heavily, pressing his bleeding back against the cold metal crate.
“This barge is connected to the mainland by a heavy mooring cable.”
He pointed a shaking, bloody finger upward into the thick fog rolling off the bay.
A rusted steel cable stretched from the towering crane above them, disappearing into the white mist.
“You want us to tightrope walk across a wet cable in the pitch black?” Sarah demanded, her voice cracking with terror.
“It’s a maintenance zip line,” Vance corrected quickly, pulling a heavy metal carabiner from his tactical belt.
“I use these barges to smuggle heavy weapons past the Coast Guard.”
He clipped the heavy metal hook directly onto the rusted steel cable hovering above their freezing heads.
“You need to hold Lily against your chest and hold onto the metal loop for your life,” Vance instructed.
“What about you?” Sarah yelled over the deafening roar of the tactical boats circling the massive barge.
“The heavy pulley will only hold the weight of you two,” Vance stated brutally, refusing to look her in the eyes.
“I am out of blood anyway.”
Sarah stared at the ruthless mafia boss, unable to comprehend his sudden willingness to die for them.
“You are just going to let them shoot you dead?” Sarah asked, her voice dropping to a stunned whisper.
“Tell your bastard of a husband that he owes me one hell of a debt,” Vance growled, his dark eyes burning fiercely.
He grabbed Sarah by her waist, lifting her forcefully off the rusted deck and directly toward the swinging metal hook.
“Grab the metal loop right now,” Vance roared over the sound of approaching heavy boots.
Sarah wrapped her freezing hands around the cold steel loop, clutching Lily desperately against her chest with her legs.
“Mom, the bad men are flanking him,” Lily announced, staring over Sarah’s freezing shoulder.
Vance spun around, raising his heavy weapon at the three armored agents stepping out of the thick fog.
“Go right now,” Vance commanded, shoving her body forcefully off the edge of the abandoned barge.
Sarah screamed in terror as gravity ripped her directly into the freezing, empty abyss.
The heavy rusted pulley shrieked against the steel cable, sending her plummeting into the blinding white fog.
The deafening roar of heavy automatic gunfire erupted from the barge directly behind them.
Sarah squeezed her eyes shut, holding her daughter in a death grip as they hurtled through the dark mist.
“We are going to crash,” Lily yelled smoothly, ignoring the terrifying speed of their descent.
A decaying wooden pier materialized out of the fog directly in front of their faces.
Sarah braced for the bone-crushing impact against the solid wood.
But instead of smashing into the pier, a pair of strong, familiar arms caught her out of the air.
Sarah crashed onto the damp wooden dock, losing her breath in an agonizing gasp.
She opened her terrified eyes, staring up into the dark, shadowed face of the man who had just caught them.
The rich, unmistakable scent of expensive vanilla and cedar cologne flooded the freezing coastal air.
“I told you I would always catch you,” the man whispered smoothly, stepping perfectly out of the heavy fog.
👉 [Tap here for Next Part] 👈
