2026-02-18 21:52:06
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CHAPTER 75
Ethan left the hospital the next morning against the doctor's advice.His ribs were still cracked. His face was still swollen. But he could walk and breathe and think clearly, and that was enough.Claire had wanted to stay with him overnight but he sent her home. She needed rest. Real rest. Not sitting in an uncomfortable hospital chair watching him sleep.Sophia had left awkwardly after walking in on them. She mumbled something about checking on her grandfather and disappeared before either of them could say anything.Now Ethan stood at the hospital's billing desk on the first floor. A young woman sat behind the counter typing on a computer. Her name tag said Rachel."Mr. Cross," she said without looking up. "Your total comes to four hundred and seventy-three thousand dollars."Ethan blinked. "For one night?""Emergency surgery. Specialist consultations. Private room. Medical imaging. Pain management." She finally looked up. "You did not have insurance listed in our system.""I do no
CHAPTER 74
The hospital room smelled like disinfectant and clean sheets.Ethan lay in the bed staring at the ceiling. His ribs were wrapped tight. His nose had been reset for the third time in his life. The doctors wanted to keep him overnight for observation but he had already told them he was leaving in the morning whether they liked it or not.James had come by an hour ago."The leader escaped," James said.. "We had the harbor locked down within minutes but he was already gone. Morrison thinks he had a boat waiting offshore."Ethan nodded."He will come back," James continued. "Angrier,better and prepared. This is not over.""I know."James stared at him. "You almost died tonight.""Almost does not count Ethan said""Next time it might."Ethan did not answer.James shook his head and left.Now the room was quiet again. Just the faint beeping of machines in the hallway and the sound of his own breathing.The door opened.Claire walked in. She had changed out of her torn clothes. The cut on her
CHAPTER 73
Ethan moved faster than the leader expected.He closed the distance in two steps, grabbed the leader's wrist and twisted it away from Claire's throat. The knife sliced through empty air instead of skin.The leader tried to counter but Ethan was already inside his guard. He drove his elbow into the man's ribs. Hard. The leader grunted and stumbled backward.Claire fell forward in the chair, gasping.The leader recovered quickly. He lunged at Ethan with the knife.Ethan sidestepped and caught his arm mid-strike. Twisted it behind his back. The knife clattered to the floor.But the leader was strong. Trained. He slammed his head backward into Ethan's face.Pain exploded across Ethan's already-broken nose. His grip loosened for just a second.That was all the leader needed.He spun free and kicked Ethan hard in the chest. Ethan flew backward and crashed into a stack of crates. Wood splintered. His vision blurred.The leader did not press the attack. Instead he turned and ran toward the ba
CHAPTER 72
Ethan looked at the knife pressed against Claire's throat.The leader was not bluffing. Ethan could see it in his posture. In the steadiness of his hand. This man had killed before. He would do it again without hesitation.Claire's eyes were locked on Ethan's face. She was trying to stay calm but her chest was rising and falling too fast. Her hands were shaking behind the chair."The ring," the leader said. "Now."Ethan did not move."I will count to three," the leader continued. "If you do not tell me where it is, she dies. One."Claire's jaw tightened. She shook her head slightly. Do not give it to him."Two."Ethan's mind was racing. He could rush the leader. Maybe close the distance before the knife moved. Maybe.But probably not.And if he was wrong, Claire would be dead before he took two steps."Three—""It is at my parents' house."The words came out flat and final.The leader's hand stopped. "What?""The ring. It is at my parents' old house. Hidden in the floor under the kitc
CHAPTER 71
The first operative came from the left with a baton aimed at Ethan's head.Ethan ducked under it and drove his fist into the man's ribs. Hard. The operative gasped and stumbled back.No time to stop. Two more were already on him from the right.Ethan blocked a punch with his forearm, twisted, grabbed the second operative's wrist and yanked him forward. Used his momentum against him. Slammed him into the first operative. Both men crashed to the floor.A kick came at his knee from behind.Ethan shifted his weight at the last second. The boot grazed his leg instead of breaking it. He spun and caught the operative's ankle mid-air, twisted hard. The man went down with a grunt.Four down.Eight to go.They were not stopping. They were not slowing down.Three operatives rushed him at once. Coordinated. One high, one low, one straight through the middle.Ethan moved like water. Sidestepped the first, ducked the second, drove his elbow into the third man's jaw. Bone cracked. The operative's he
CHAPTER 70
Pier 19 was abandoned.It had probably been a working dock at some point, years ago. Now it was just rotting wood and rusted metal and the smell of salt water and oil mixing together in the cold night air. A single warehouse sat at the end of the pier, its windows dark, its walls streaked with rust.Ethan parked the car and stepped out.The wind off the water was cold and sharp. He zipped his jacket and walked toward the warehouse, his footsteps quiet on the wooden boards beneath him.He had switched the real ring for a fake before leaving the villa. The fake was good. Same size, same weight. Same basic shape. He had made it weeks ago as a precaution, never thinking he would actually need it.Tonight he needed it.The warehouse door was open. Just slightly. A thin line of yellow light spilling out from inside.Ethan pushed it open and walked in.The inside was large and mostly empty. Concrete floor. High ceiling. A few old crates stacked against the walls. Bare bulbs hanging from meta
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