BREAK THE HANDLER

Warehouse 17

The west gate was unlocked.

Dante pushed through, Naomi close behind him. The warehouse loomed ahead, dark and silent. No guards visible. No patrols.

Too quiet.

"Something's wrong," he whispered.

Naomi checked her phone. "Webb's team isn't here yet. We have forty minutes."

"Where are Viktor's men?"

"Inside. Rotating shifts. They're sloppy."

Dante didn't like it. Sloppy meant easy. Easy meant bait.

He moved to the loading dock. A metal door hung slightly ajar. He slipped through, weapon raised.

The interior was vast. Stacked containers rising to the ceiling. Narrow corridors between them. Dim emergency lights casting long shadows.

Naomi pointed left. "The prisoners are in the center. Cage area."

Dante moved forward, clearing corners. His footsteps echoed.

Then he heard it. A low hum. Generators maybe. Or something else.

He froze. Listened.

Footsteps. Multiple sets. Coming from the right.

He pulled Naomi behind a container. Pressed flat against the metal.

Three men walked past. Viktor's crew. Rifles slung. Casual.

They didn't see him.

Dante waited until they rounded a corner. Then he moved again.

The cage appeared ahead. Seven figures huddled inside. Dirty. Exhausted. The prisoners.

He counted. Four men. Three women. All alive.

But something else caught his attention. A man stood near the cage. Not a guard. Well-dressed. Expensive shoes.

Senator Aldrich.

Dante's blood went cold.

The senator was here. In the warehouse. Watching the prisoners.

Naomi tensed beside him. "That's not supposed to happen. He's not supposed to be here."

"Webb told him about the transfer," Dante said. "He came to see his investment."

Aldrich spoke to one of the guards. The man nodded and walked away.

Dante crept closer. He needed to hear.

"...cannot afford a leak," Aldrich was saying. "These people know too much. The transfer was supposed to be clean."

"It will be," the guard said. "Viktor is handling the logistics."

"Viktor is a mercenary. He's also a liability. I want him eliminated after the transfer. Webb has the authorization."

Dante's jaw tightened. Webb had already told him the prisoners were being silenced. But Aldrich was giving orders. Directly. On the ground.

The senator pulled out a phone. "I'm moving the timeline. The convoy leaves in twelve hours. Not sixty-seven."

"Sir, that's—"

"I don't care. The risk is too high. Webb's cleaner is still alive. He's been poking around. Asking questions. I want this operation completed before he figures out the full picture."

Dante's grip on the weapon tightened.

Aldrich turned to leave. "I'm staying until the transfer is complete. Arrange accommodations."

The guard nodded. Aldrich walked toward the exit.

Dante had a clear shot. The senator was thirty feet away. Unarmed. Unprotected.

One bullet. The whole conspiracy collapses.

But Aldrich was the only one who knew the network's leadership. If he died, the evidence died with him.

Dante's finger hovered over the trigger.

Then Aldrich paused. Turned back. His eyes scanned the warehouse.

Dante pressed deeper into the shadow.

Aldrich stared for a long moment. Then he smiled.

"I know you're here, Cross," he called out. "Webb told me you'd try something."

Dante didn't move.

"The prisoners are already dead. They just don't know it yet. The convoy is a front. They'll be eliminated the moment they leave this building."

Naomi grabbed Dante's arm. "We need to go. Now."

But Aldrich wasn't finished.

"You want to save them, Cross? You want to expose the network? Then come find me. I'll be at the Harbor Hotel. Suite 1400. I'll leave the door unlocked."

He turned and walked out.

Dante's heart pounded. The arrogance was staggering. Aldrich wasn't hiding. He was baiting him.

"Don't," Naomi said. "It's a trap. He wants you to come to him."

"He's right," Dante said. "The prisoners are already dead. They just don't know it yet."

"Then we save them. We get them out. We prove the network exists."

Dante turned to her. "You know where Gary hid the evidence?"

Naomi nodded. "A safety deposit box. First Commercial Bank. Box 427. Gary gave me the key before he died."

"Why didn't you use it?"

"Because Webb has people everywhere. One wrong move and my family dies."

Dante stared at the cage. The prisoners looked back at him through the bars. Terrified. Hopeful.

He couldn't save them. Not alone. Not with Aldrich and Webb watching.

But he could expose the network. Release the evidence. Burn everything down.

He made his decision.

"Get me to that bank," he said. "Then I'm going to the hotel."

Naomi's eyes widened. "You'll die."

"Maybe." Dante stepped back from the cage. "But I'm taking Aldrich with me."

They moved toward the exit. Fast. Silent.

Outside, the port was dark. No movement.

Dante started running. Naomi followed.

But as they reached the fence, headlights flooded the area.

Three SUVs. Blacked out. Webb's team.

They were early.

Dante pulled Naomi behind a dumpster. Bullets ripped through the air. Pinging off metal.

"Split up," he said. "Get to the bank. I'll draw them off."

"Dante—"

"Go."

He fired three shots at the SUVs, then ran left. The vehicles turned to follow.

He ducked through a maze of containers, bullets chasing him.

He reached the outer wall. Climbed. Dropped onto the street.

One SUV followed. Two went after Naomi.

Dante ran. His side burned. His heart pounded.

He couldn't lose her. Not now. She was the only one who knew where the evidence was hidden.

He turned back. Raced toward the gate.

The SUV with Naomi was cornering her against a wall.

Dante raised his weapon. Fired through the windshield. The driver slumped.

The other two men scrambled out. He dropped them both.

Naomi was on the ground, trembling.

"Come on." He pulled her up. "We're out of time."

They ran into the night.

Behind them, the warehouse burned. Viktor's men were shooting at something. Someone.

Dante didn't look back.

The bank was two miles away. The hotel was three.

The clock was ticking.

And Aldrich was waiting.

---

When you have nothing left to lose, what stops you from becoming the monster?