Chapter 8 - The Fall of VanessaThe shot fired, but instead of blood, a heavy iron security grate slammed down from the ceiling between Vanessa and me, intercepting the bullet with a deafening metallic clang.
"FBI! Drop your weapon now!"
Tactical units flooded the vault room from every concealed entrance, their laser sights painting Vanessa’s chest in a web of red dots. She gasped, dropping the gun as she realized she had walked into a flawless trap. Within seconds, she was pinned to the floor, her wrists bound in zip-ties.
Detective Miller stepped out from behind the security booth, holding the audio recording device. "We got everything, Vanessa. Attempted murder, corporate espionage, conspiracy to commit homicide. You're done."
Vanessa glared at me from the floor, her eyes spitting pure venom. "You think you won? You think this changes anything? Ethan isn't at the estate. He’s already gone. The moment I don't check in within ten minutes, he boards a private helicopter at a secondary location. You'll never find him, and he will spend the rest of his life tracking you and that little brat down."
My heart plummeted. The arrogance in her voice told me she wasn't lying. Ethan had used his own lover as a distraction while he secured his escape route.
"Where is the secondary location, Vanessa?" Miller growled, grabbing her by the collar.
Vanessa just laughed, remaining silent.
Suddenly, my phone buzzed in my pocket. It was the same anonymous number from before—Dr. Marcus Vance. I answered it immediately on speakerphone.
"Elena! Don't listen to Vanessa," Marcus’s voice came through, urgent and breathless. "I'm monitoring Ethan's personal laptop through a backdoor trojan virus I installed. He didn't go to a helicopter. He knows the FBI is involved now, and he knows he can't leave the country without his final leverage. He’s not fleeing—he’s heading to the upstate safehouse. He tracked your son's location through a GPS tag he hid inside Ryan's favorite stuffed animal before he left the house!"
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The room went entirely cold. The stuffed animal. Ryan had been carrying his favorite toy bear with him the entire time.
Ethan wasn't running away. He was going to take our son hostage to force the government to let him go.
