651 Shadows on the River: Trust, Betrayal, and Survival in the Rain-Slicked Underbelly of Hadley

Lincoln’s expression turned to stone. He punched a series of commands into the wall console, and a large, high-definition screen hidden behind a wooden panel slid open, casting a blue glow across the library.

Six split-screen feeds flickered to life.

Rain lashed relentlessly against the security cameras mounted around the exterior of the estate. On camera three—the south access road—a pair of unmarked black SUVs idled near the shattered remains of a security bollard. A group of men in heavy waterproof tactical gear poured out of the vehicles, moving with terrifying, military-grade synchronization.

“They bypassed the biometric sensors,” Bruno’s voice hissed over the intercom, background noise suggesting he was already moving through the ground-floor armory. “That’s not local muscle, Boss. That’s an extraction team. Someone gave them the override codes.”

Lincoln didn't flinch. But his eyes narrowed with a lethal focus that made my breath catch in my throat.

“Garrett,” Lincoln muttered, more to himself than to me.

“Your polished friend?” I asked, stepping closer to the screen.

“Garrett handles our corporate acquisitions and digital security interface,” Lincoln said, his voice dropping into a dangerous register. “If the override codes were leaked, only two people in the world had the master key. Me… and him.”

Suddenly, the screen flickered violently. Static hissed across all six monitors, and then one by one, the feeds blinked out, replaced by a blinding, solid white glare.

“They’ve jammed the local network,” Bruno’s voice cut out with a sharp screech of feedback, followed by total silence.

“Bruno?” Lincoln shouted into the console. “Bruno!”

Only dead air answered him.

The power in the library flickered, dipped, and then went completely dark. The only illumination came from the dying embers of the fireplace and the pale, ghostly light of the storm outside.

“Delia,” Lincoln said, his voice eerily calm as he reached down and scooped his heavy automatic pistol off the desk, checking the clip with a practiced click. “Stay behind me. Do not make a sound.”