Chapter 13 - Desperate Measures
The humiliation inside the Royal York ballroom was total, but wounded predators are at their most lethal when cornered.
By two o'clock the following morning, Marcus Sterling’s private security network was activated. Realizing that the federal authorities were preparing sealed indictments based on the forensic evidence provided by Elena and Jerry, Marcus and Victoria retreated to a fortified penthouse suite overlooking Lake Ontario near the industrial district of Pier 44.
Inside Lakeview Manor, the phone in Caleb’s private quarters rang.
Caleb picked it up. "Wallace."
"Caleb... they know," Shelby’s voice was ragged, choked with panic and sobs. She was speaking from a payphone near the waterfront docks. "Marcus found out that I gave your father the ledger! He sent two of his private contractors to my apartment. I barely escaped through the fire escape!"
Caleb stood up immediately, the protective instinct overriding every grievance from the past. "Shelby, where are you right now?"
"Pier 44... warehouse seven," she wept. "I have the physical encrypted hard drive containing Marcus’s personal offshore banking authorizations. The one that proves Victoria orchestrated the entire industrial sabotage against the vineyard. But Caleb... there’s a black SUV parked outside the gate. They cut off the street exit. Please... I’m sorry for what I did to your mother. I’m so sorry... just don't let them kill me!"
The line went dead with a sickening crack of static.
Caleb didn't hesitate. He pulled on his work jacket, grabbed his keys, and bolted down the grand staircase.
"Caleb!"
He turned. Jerry was standing at the end of the hall, dressed and alert. Behind him stood Frank Morrison and two Ontario Provincial Police tactical liaisons.
"Dad, Shelby has the physical master drive at Pier 44. Marcus’s men have her trapped," Caleb said urgently.
Jerry looked at his son. A father’s fear flashed across his eyes, but it was instantly superseded by an overwhelming pride in the man Caleb had become. Caleb was no longer running away from duty; he was running toward fire to protect a human life, even one that had deeply wronged him.
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"We go together," Jerry said firmly. "Tactical is already en route. But Marcus will have private security on site. We take the service launch from the harbor. We hit the pier from the water."
***
