Chapter 11 - No Mercy for the Wicked
Pier 44 was an abandoned, rusted shipping yard jutting out into the black, churning waters of the Hudson River. The wind howled through stacked containers like the cries of the damned.
Alexander did not call the police. He didn't need them.
He drove his black Maybach straight through the rusted chain-link security gate, crashing the vehicle to a halt in the center of the pier. He stepped out into the freezing wind, wearing a heavy tactical vest over a dark turtleneck, his face set in stone. In his hand, he carried a reinforced steel briefcase containing the blank transfer documents Richard had demanded.
"Iâm here, Richard!" Alexanderâs voice echoed across the empty docks, carrying an authority that made the shadows themselves seem to tremble. "Show yourself!"
From behind a towering stack of shipping containers, Richard Sterling stepped forward into the pale moonlight, flanked by four heavily armed mercenaries. Clara and Lily were bound and gagged, tied to wooden chairs near the edge of the wooden pier, with the dark, freezing water rushing violently beneath them. Lily was crying softly, her small frame shivering, while Clara glared at Richard with fierce, unyielding defiance.
"Ah, the prodigal CEO arrives," Richard sneered, a twisted grin spreading across his aged, arrogant face. He gestured to one of his guards, who kept a loaded pistol pressed firmly against Claraâs temple. "Drop the briefcase, Alexander. And kick it over here."
Alexander didn't hesitate. He dropped the heavy steel case onto the wooden boards and kicked it toward his uncleâs feet.
"You always were too sentimental, boy," Richard chuckled, reaching down to pop the latches of the briefcase. "Six years ago, I had your little girlfriend thrown into the sea because she was a distraction. I should have made sure her body washed ashore. But no matterâfamily ties always manage to cause trouble."
Richard looked down at the papers inside the case. "And now, the Sterling empire belongs toâ"
He never finished the sentence.
Alexanderâs hand flashed to his belt, pulling out a specialized military-grade EMP flash grenade. With lightning-fast reflexes, he pulled the pin and hurled it directly at the metal generator box behind Richard.
May you like
BOOM!
The flashbang detonated with a blinding explosion of white-hot light and an earsplitting shockwave, instantly short-circuiting every weapon-mounted laser and tactical light the mercenaries carried, plunging the pier into temporary sensory chaos.
