Chapter 4 - The Ghost of the Past
The bubble of safety inside the estate was violently punctured on a rainy Tuesday afternoon.
Joan was in the library, helping Betty with a reading assignment, when the heavy oak doors swung open. Marcus, the floor manager from the Silver Oak who was actually Gideon's high-level intelligence operative, stepped inside. His face was grim, a blood-stained folder gripped tightly in his hand.
"Boss," Marcus said, addressing Gideon who was reading a contract by the fire. "We have a breach. Not here, but at Miss Rhodess’s old apartment complex."
Joan stood up, her pulse spiking. "My apartment? What happened?"
Marcus looked at Gideon for permission before speaking. Gideon gave a curt nod. "An extraction team from the Vance Cartel hit the building two hours ago. They were looking for your lease records, your tax documents, anything that could give them a digital trail to where you were taken after the hospital discharge. They left the landlord hanging from the ceiling of the lobby."
Joan gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. The reality of the world she had been dragged into crashed down on her all over again. A innocent man was dead just because she had rented a cheap room from him.
Gideon stood up slowly, the warmth from the fireplace entirely disappearing from his expression. He walked over to Marcus, taking the folder. His face was a mask of terrifying, absolute stone.
"Who led the team, Marcus?" Gideon asked, his voice deathly quiet.
"Aldis Pike," Marcus replied. "The former chief of police who went rogue after the cartel bought out the department. He’s the one who orchestrated the Silver Oak hit."
Gideon turned to look at Joan, his eyes burning with an icy, lethal fire. He walked to her, placing his heavy hands on her shoulders. "Listen to me, Joan. Pike thinks he’s hunting a helpless waitress. He doesn't know that you belong to me now. I am going to end this tonight."
"Gideon, no," Joan whispered, gripping his forearms. "It’s a trap. If he hit my apartment publicly, he wants you to come out."
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"Let him want," Gideon sneered, a cruel, dangerous smile touching the corners of his lips. "He wants a war. I am going to give him an apocalypse. Marcus, lock down the estate. Level four protocol. If a bird flies over the wall without a transponder, shoot it down."
He leaned down and kissed Joan fiercely on the forehead before pulling a sleek, black weapon from the holster hidden beneath his armpit. "Stay in the panic room with Betty. I will return when the city is clean."
