133 The Geneva Escape: A Family Betrayal, a Decoy Trap, and the High-Stakes Chase to Ground a Shadow Syndicate

The driver’s side door of the cargo van swung open, and a heavy-set man in tactical gear stepped out, holding a submachine gun pointed safely toward the ground. Behind him, two other operatives dragged a sobbing, duct-taped Jasmine out of the sliding side door, shoving her stumbling feet onto the gravel.

I opened my door and stepped out into the biting mountain air, my dress uniform jacket buttoned tight against the chill.

“Stop right there, Sergeant!” the lead operative barked, raising his weapon slightly as he stepped into the beam of my headlights. “Drop the briefcase on the ground and kick it toward the van.”

“Where’s Vance?” I asked, keeping my hands visible near my waist as I scanned the tree line for snipers.

“Director Vance doesn't meet low-level military assets in the dirt,” the operative sneered, his finger resting casually near the trigger guard. “Give us the drive, and your sister walks back to her Lexus. Refuse, and we leave her tied to a pine tree for the wolves.”

Jasmine let out a muffled scream through the silver duct tape across her mouth, her eyes wide with terror as she stared at me.

“Alright,” I said calmly.

I reached down to my side, unclipped the heavy steel data case from my belt, and placed it carefully on the gravel. I took a slow step back, keeping my eyes locked on the lead operative.

“Kick it!” he ordered, gesturing sharply with the barrel of his gun.

I gave the case a firm shove with the toe of my boot. It slid across the loose stones, coming to a stop right at the tactical operative’s combat boots.

He grinned, kneeling down to unlatch the steel locks. “Smart girl. You should have stayed in the military.”

“You might want to check the encryption handshake before you open it,” I said, letting a cold smile touch my lips.

The operative frowned, lifting the lid.

Inside, instead of glowing LED drive lights, the case contained a small, blinking red diode wired directly to a commercial digital timer currently counting down from ten.