Chapter 8 - The Railyard at Midnight
The South Chicago railyard was a graveyard of rusted boxcars, rotting wooden ties, and dense, freezing fog blowing off the lake.
At 11:50 PM, a single set of headlights cut through the darkness.
A black sedan stopped near the center of an abandoned maintenance hangar. The driver’s door opened, and Eleanor Vance stepped out onto the cold, wet gravel. She wore a simple dark coat, her posture straight, though her hands were cold as ice inside her pockets.
Hidden inside her coat lining was a tiny GPS tracker and an open audio transmitter connected directly to Roman’s tactical team positioned in the surrounding shadows.
"Julian!" Eleanor’s voice echoed hollowly through the vast, empty hangar. "I'm here! Show me Toby!"
A flickering floodlight above the hangar snapped on, blinding her for a second.
From behind a row of stacked rusted crates, Julian Moretti stepped into the light. He wore a heavy dark overcoat, holding a snub-nosed revolver in his right hand. Dragging behind him was a twelve-year-old boy, his hands tied with zip-ties, tape covering his mouth.
"Eleanor," Julian sneered, a wicked, triumphant grin spreading across his face. "Look at you. Living like a princess in Blackmere’s house, dressing in fine clothes while your family rots."
"Let the boy go, Julian," Eleanor demanded, taking a slow step forward, keeping her voice as steady as possible. "You have me. He has nothing to do with this."
Julian laughed bitterly, shoving the terrified boy toward one of his guards. "You really thought you could run from me? You thought a high-and-mighty mob boss in Chicago could protect you forever?"
"I don't need him to protect me," Eleanor said, looking Julian dead in the eye. "I came here myself."
Julian stepped closer, lifting the barrel of his revolver and resting it under Eleanor’s chin, forcing her to look up at him. The cold steel felt terrifying against her skin, but Eleanor forced herself not to flinch. She stared into his cruel eyes with unyielding defiance.
"You're coming back to Detroit, Eleanor," Julian growled softly. "And after I deal with you, I'm going to burn Roman Blackmere's estate to the ground."
"Is that right?" a deep, icy voice echoed from the rafters above.
Julian froze.
Before he could react, the glass skylights above the hangar shattered in a thunderous spray of rain and glass!
Tactical ropes dropped from the ceiling, and six heavily armed Blackmere operators descended like dark angels, assault rifles flashing in the darkness—BANG! BANG! BANG!
Julian’s guards were taken down in seconds, dropping their weapons as non-lethal flashbangs detonated, blinding the room in white light.
Julian gasped, pulling Eleanor violently against his chest, holding the gun to her temple. "Stay back! Stay back or I kill her!"
May you like
Through the smoke and flashing lights, a single figure walked calmly into the hangar.
Roman Blackmere.
