Chapter 4 - The Showdown at the Harbor
The final confrontation didn't happen in a ballroom. It happened on a decommissioned freight ship at the edge of the Hudson River.
Dominic had received intelligence that Julian was planning to ship out of the country before the authorities could close the net. We arrived at the dock under the cover of a freezing, torrential downpour.
Dominic was armed, his movements fluid and deadly as he moved through the shipping containers. I followed, wearing a kevlar vest and carrying a handgun that felt heavy and alien in my hand.
We found Julian on the upper deck, standing beside a small transport helicopter, a cynical smile on his face.
“Dominic Mercer,” Julian called out over the sound of the rain. “You’re wasting your resources on a girl who has nothing to give you.”
“I’m not here for money, Julian,” Dominic shouted back, stepping into the light of a floodlamp. “I’m here for the debt.”
Julian pulled a pistol, but he was too slow. Dominic fired twice, clipping Julian’s arm and sending the weapon spinning across the deck.
Julian scrambled, trying to reach the helicopter, but I stepped out from the shadows, blocking his path.
“End of the line, Julian,” I said, my voice steady.
He stared at me, his face twisted with rage. “You’re nothing without that name! You’re just a ghost!”
“I’m a survivor,” I said.
I didn't shoot him. I watched as Dominic’s men moved in, dragging Julian into the dark, where he would face a reckoning far worse than a quick death.
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As the sirens began to wail in the distance, Dominic walked over to me, wrapping his coat around my shivering shoulders.
“It’s over,” he said, his voice soft against the rain.
