THE INTERROGATOR

The Escape

Cole hit the gangplank at full sprint. Behind him, the roar of engines grew louder. Headlights cut through the darkness, illuminating the dock in harsh white light. Shaw's reinforcements were arriving.

He didn't slow down. He hit the concrete and kept running, his legs pumping, his lungs burning. The dock stretched out before him, a maze of containers and cranes. Somewhere out there, Riley was waiting. Katya was waiting.

"Cole!" A voice cut through the chaos. Katya's voice. She was standing near a stack of containers, waving frantically. "This way!"

Cole changed direction, sprinting toward her. He could hear footsteps behind him. Shouts. The sound of men giving chase.

"Get in!" Katya pointed to a rusted delivery van parked behind the containers. "Now!"

Cole dove into the back of the van. Katya slammed the doors shut and jumped into the driver's seat. The engine roared to life. The van lurched forward.

Bullets pinged off the metal body. Cole pressed himself flat against the floor, his hands over his head. The van swerved violently, tires screeching against the concrete.

"Hold on!" Katya shouted.

The van crashed through a chain-link fence and bounced onto a service road. More bullets. More shouting. And then the sounds faded. The van sped into the night, leaving the dock behind.

Cole sat up slowly, his heart pounding. His hands were shaking. His breath came in ragged gasps.

Riley was sitting in the corner of the van, her arms wrapped around her knees. She was pale. Shaking. But she was alive. She was safe.

"Riley." Cole crawled toward her. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

She looked up at him. Her eyes were red from crying. "Dad. I thought I'd never see you again."

"I'm here. I'm right here." He pulled her into a tight embrace. She clung to him, her body trembling.

"I was so scared. They kept saying they were going to kill you. They kept saying—"

"Shhh. It's okay. I'm okay. We're both okay."

The van rumbled through the city streets. Cole held his daughter, feeling her heartbeat against his chest. For the first time in hours, he allowed himself to breathe.

---

Twenty minutes later, they were in a warehouse on the outskirts of the city. The building was abandoned. Dusty. Filled with old machinery and forgotten memories. But it was safe. For now.

Katya had secured the perimeter. She had checked for tracking devices. She had swept the building for bugs. Now she was standing by a window, her phone pressed to her ear, speaking in rapid Russian.

Cole sat with Riley on a pile of old blankets. She was drinking water from a bottle. Her color was returning. Her hands had stopped shaking.

"I'm sorry," she said softly. "I should have been more careful. I should have known something was wrong."

"This isn't your fault."

"I knew Aunt Elena was acting strange. She kept asking questions about you. About where you were. I should have told someone. I should have—"

"Riley." Cole took her hands. "Look at me."

She looked up.

"None of this is your fault. You did nothing wrong. The people who took you are professionals. They've been doing this for years. You couldn't have stopped them."

"But I could have done something. I could have—"

"Riley. Stop. You're alive. That's all that matters."

She was silent for a moment. Then she nodded slowly. "What happens now?"

Cole didn't answer. He didn't have an answer. He had been running for so long, fighting for so long, that he had forgotten what it felt like to stop.

Katya walked over. "I've made some calls. We have a safe house across the city. We can stay there tonight."

"Tonight?" Cole looked at her. "What about tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow, we figure out our next move." Katya's voice was grim. "Shaw knows we're alive. He knows we're working together. He's not going to stop hunting us."

Cole nodded slowly. He had known this moment would come. The moment when the chase became a war.

"Riley," he said. "I need you to go with Katya. She's going to take you to a safe place. Somewhere no one can find you."

Riley's eyes widened. "What about you?"

"I have something I need to do."

"No. Dad, you can't—"

"I have to, Riley. Shaw killed your mother. He destroyed our family. And he's not going to stop until he destroys everything else I love." Cole's voice was hard. "I have to stop him. For good."

Riley stared at him. Her face was a mask of fear and anger. "Then I'm coming with you."

"No."

"Yes. You can't stop me. I'm not a little girl anymore. I can help."

Cole wanted to argue. He wanted to tell her that she was too young, too inexperienced, too precious to risk. But when he looked into her eyes, he saw something he hadn't seen before. Determination. Fire.

She was her mother's daughter.

"You're going to be safe," Cole said. "That's non-negotiable. But if you want to help, you can do it from the safe house. You can gather information. You can be my eyes and ears."

Riley's jaw tightened. But she nodded. "Okay. But you have to promise me something."

"What?"

"Promise me you'll come back."

Cole pulled her into another embrace. "I promise."

---

Katya drove Riley to the safe house. Cole stayed behind, pacing the empty warehouse. His mind was racing. There were too many variables. Too many unknowns.

His phone buzzed. A text from an unknown number.

*You survived. Impressive. But this isn't over. Meet me at the Blue Door. Come alone.*

Cole stared at the screen. The Blue Door. Maksim's bar. The man who had betrayed him.

But the text wasn't from Maksim. The number was different. Someone else was reaching out.

*Who is this?* he typed.

The response came immediately: *Someone who can help you find Shaw. But you have to come alone. No tricks. No backup.*

Cole pocketed the phone. Every instinct told him it was a trap. But he had no other leads. No other options.

He grabbed his jacket and walked toward the door.

---

The Blue Door was quiet when Cole arrived. The neon sign flickered overhead. The windows were dark. The door was unlocked.

Cole pushed it open and stepped inside. The bar was empty. No customers. No bartender. Just a single figure sitting in the corner booth.

Maksim Volkov.

Cole walked over and sat down across from him. Maksim looked terrible. His face was bruised. His arm was in a sling. His eyes were red and swollen.

"Cole," Maksim said. "I was wondering if you'd come."

"You texted me."

"I did." Maksim winced as he shifted in his seat. "I wanted to apologize. For everything. For the betrayal. For leading you into traps."

"It was a little late for apologies."

"I know." Maksim's voice was raw. "But you have to understand. They had my family. Shaw's people. They threatened to kill my wife. My children. I had no choice."

Cole studied him. The man was telling the truth. He could see it in his eyes, his posture, his voice. The guilt was real. The fear was real.

"Where is Shaw?" Cole asked.

"I don't know. I never knew. I just followed orders. But I know someone who does." Maksim reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. "This is an address. A warehouse in the industrial district. It's where Shaw's people meet. You'll find answers there."

Cole took the paper. "Why are you helping me?"

"Because I want my family back." Maksim's eyes met his. "And because I know you're the only one who can stop Shaw. He's been building something for years. An army. A network. He's not just trying to kill you, Cole. He's trying to take over the city."

"Take over the city?"

"He's been buying up territory. Making alliances. Eliminating rivals. The Orlov family is just one piece of the puzzle. He wants everything. And he won't stop until he has it."

Cole studied the paper in his hand. The industrial district. A warehouse. Answers.

"If this is another trap, Maksim—"

"It's not. I swear to you. I'm done playing Shaw's games. I want him dead as much as you do."

Cole stood up. "If you're lying, I'll kill you myself. And I won't make it quick."

"I'm not lying. Go. Find the truth. And when you do, remember that I helped you."

Cole walked toward the door. He paused at the threshold and looked back. Maksim was sitting alone in the booth, a broken man in a broken world.

"Find your family," Cole said. "Get them out of the city. And don't look back."

He walked out into the night.

---

The industrial district was a wasteland of abandoned factories and rusting machinery. The streets were empty. The buildings were dark. It was the kind of place where secrets were buried and bodies were hidden.

Cole found the warehouse easily enough. It was a massive structure, its windows boarded up, its walls covered in graffiti. A single light burned in an upper window.

He approached cautiously, his hand on his weapon. The warehouse's main door was chained shut. But there was a side entrance. A rusted door that creaked when he pushed it open.

Cole slipped inside.

The interior was a maze of corridors and rooms. Some were empty. Others were filled with crates and machinery. Cole moved through the darkness, his senses on high alert.

And then he heard it. A voice. Coming from a room at the end of the hall.

He moved closer. The voice was familiar. Female. Cold.

Elena.

"I told you he'd come," she was saying. "He's predictable. That's his weakness."

A second voice responded. Male. Calm. "Predictable is not the same as weak, Elena. He survived the ship. He survived the dock. He's proven to be more resilient than I anticipated."

Cole's blood ran cold. Shaw. It had to be Shaw.

"He's still alone," Elena said. "He's still vulnerable. We can take him here."

"No. Not yet. I have other plans for him."

Cole pressed his back against the wall. His heart was pounding. He was so close. So close to the man who had destroyed his life.

He peeked through the c***k in the door. He could see Elena. She was standing by a window, her arms crossed. And behind her, partially hidden in the shadows, was a figure in a dark suit.

Shaw.

"Let me finish it," Elena said. "Let me kill him. He's a liability."

"No. He's an asset. A broken one, perhaps, but still an asset." Shaw's voice was smooth. "He's going to find the mole for us. He's going to destroy the Orlov family from the inside. And when he's done, we'll have everything we want."

Cole felt his hands clench into fists. They were using him. Playing him like a puppet.

"Elena," Shaw said. "Our guest is here. Why don't you go and invite him in."

Cole froze. They knew. They knew he was there.

Elena turned toward the door. A cruel smile spread across her face. "Of course, boss."

She walked toward the door. Cole had a split second to react.

He ran.

---

Cole burst through the warehouse door and sprinted into the night. Behind him, the warehouse erupted in chaos. Shouts. Footsteps. The sound of pursuit.

He didn't stop. He didn't look back. He just ran.

Through the streets. Between buildings. Over fences. He ran until his lungs burned and his legs screamed.

Finally, he collapsed in an alley. His back against the wall. His chest heaving.

He was alone. He had lost Shaw. He had lost Elena. He had lost his one chance to end this.

But he had something else. Something valuable.

He had confirmation. Shaw was in the city. Elena was with him. And they had plans for him.

Plans that involved the Orlov family. Plans that involved the mole. Plans that would destroy everything Cole had built.

But Cole had plans too. Plans that involved finding the mole. Plans that involved destroying Shaw. Plans that involved protecting his daughter.

The game was far from over.

And Cole Brennan was just getting started.