The Warehouse Ultimatum
1028 Words
Naomi’s hands went numb.
Arthur’s phone slipped from her trembling fingers onto the marble floor.
The message still glowed on the screen.
Bring the journal to the warehouse tonight… or Ethan dies.
“No…”
Her voice broke.
“Not Ethan.”
Jaxon picked up the phone and read the message again.
His expression darkened.
“They’ve crossed the line.”
Naomi grabbed his arm.
“We have to go.”
Rachel stepped between them.
“No.”
Naomi stared at her.
“They have my brother.”
“And that’s exactly why you can’t rush into their trap.”
“They’ll kill him!”
Rachel’s voice remained steady.
“And they’ll kill you too if you go in blindly.”
Naomi’s breathing became uneven.
“They’re asking for the journal.”
“I’ll give it to them.”
Jaxon shook his head.
“If they wanted only the journal, they wouldn’t have kidnapped Ethan.”
She looked at him helplessly.
“Then what do they want?”
He didn’t answer.
Because he didn’t know.
Arthur’s phone rang.
He answered immediately.
“Arthur speaking.”
A distorted voice echoed through the speaker.
“You have one hour.”
Arthur placed the call on speaker.
The stranger laughed softly.
“I expected Mr. Hayes to be smarter.”
Jaxon stepped forward.
“Let Ethan go.”
“You don’t make the rules.”
“What do you want?”
“The journal.”
“You’ll get it.”
“And Naomi.”
The room fell silent.
Naomi felt her heart stop.
Jaxon spoke before anyone else could.
“No.”
The stranger laughed again.
“I wasn’t asking.”
The line went dead.
Naomi slowly looked at Jaxon.
“I’m going.”
“No.”
“They won’t release Ethan otherwise.”
“I said no.”
She stepped closer.
“He’s my little brother.”
“I raised him after our mother died.”
“I won’t abandon him.”
Jaxon’s voice softened.
“And I won’t let you sacrifice yourself.”
Their eyes met.
Neither of them looked away.
Rachel finally broke the silence.
“We’re doing this differently.”
Everyone turned toward her.
“We give them what they think they want.”
Arthur immediately understood.
“A fake journal.”
Rachel nodded.
“The real one stays with us.”
William frowned.
“What if they notice?”
“They won’t have time.”
Jaxon looked thoughtful.
“We’ll need a distraction.”
Arthur smiled slightly.
“I have an idea.”
Two hours later…
Night had fallen over Brooklyn.
Rain poured from the sky, drenching the abandoned warehouses along the docks.
The area was completely deserted.
Except for one building.
Warehouse Twelve.
Its rusted metal doors stood half open.
A single light glowed inside.
Arthur parked an unmarked van two streets away.
Rachel checked her radio.
“Sniper teams are in position.”
“SWAT is waiting for my signal.”
Jaxon looked at Naomi.
“You stay behind me.”
She nodded.
“I promise.”
Arthur handed Jaxon a black leather folder.
“The fake journal.”
“It looks identical.”
Jaxon took it.
“Good.”
Rachel checked her watch.
“They’re expecting us.”
Naomi looked toward the warehouse.
Her stomach twisted.
Somewhere inside…
Ethan was waiting.
She silently prayed he was still alive.
The four of them walked through the rain.
Every step echoed across the empty docks.
The closer they came, the louder Naomi’s heartbeat became.
They stopped at the entrance.
A voice echoed from inside.
“Come in.”
Jaxon reached for Naomi’s hand.
She squeezed it tightly.
Together they entered the warehouse.
The enormous building was almost empty.
Only a few hanging lights illuminated the concrete floor.
In the center of the room sat a single chair.
Ethan was tied to it.
His mouth was covered with tape.
His face was bruised.
The moment he saw Naomi, tears filled his eyes.
“Ethan!”
Naomi instinctively stepped forward.
“Stop.”
The command echoed through the warehouse.
A dozen armed men emerged from the shadows.
They surrounded them within seconds.
Jaxon immediately pulled Naomi behind him.
A tall man dressed in black slowly walked into the light.
His face remained hidden beneath a hood.
“So…”
He smiled.
“The happy couple finally arrived.”
Jaxon kept his eyes locked on him.
“You wanted the journal.”
The man nodded.
“And you brought it?”
Jaxon held up the leather folder.
“It’s here.”
The stranger smiled.
“Excellent.”
He snapped his fingers.
One of the armed men walked toward Ethan and removed the tape from his mouth.
“Naomi!”
Ethan shouted.
“Run!”
Before anyone could react, another figure stepped out of the darkness.
High heels clicked against the concrete floor.
Naomi’s eyes widened.
“Victoria.”
Victoria smiled coldly.
“I told you we’d meet again.”
She stopped beside the hooded man.
Then, without warning…
She wrapped her arm around his.
Naomi frowned.
“So you’ve been working together all along.”
Victoria laughed.
“You still don’t understand.”
She looked at the hooded man with admiration.
“I don’t work for him.”
A slow smile spread across her lips.
“I work with my husband.”
Silence crashed over the warehouse.
Jaxon’s face hardened.
“Husband?”
Victoria nodded.
“We got married six months ago.”
She looked at Naomi with triumph.
“You were so busy pretending to be Jaxon’s wife…”
“…that you never wondered why I stopped chasing him.”
The hooded man slowly removed his gloves.
Then he reached for the edge of his hood.
Jaxon took a step forward.
“Who are you?”
The man smiled.
“You’ve been asking that question for a long time.”
He pulled back the hood.
Naomi gasped.
Jaxon’s entire body went rigid.
William had once described Daniel Carter’s closest ally.
The man standing before them wasn’t a stranger.
He was someone Jaxon recognized.
Someone he had trusted.
Someone who was supposed to have died…
Ten years ago.
- Writer
- chap_listContents
- likeADD