Chapter 16
CHAPTER 16: THE HUNT BEGINS
The penthouse was transformed into a tactical command center within two hours. Marcus Vance stood over a digital map of the US-Mexico border, his face grim.
"It wasn't a standard prison break," Marcus explained, pointing to satellite imagery of black hawk helicopters flying low over the Chihuahuan desert. "This was funded by an external player. Someone with deep military connections. They didn't just break Santiago out—they slaughtered the entire guard detail."
"Who has that kind of power now?" my father demanded, his voice trembling with a mixture of rage and terror. "The Rivas money is gone! We took it all!"
"Not all of it," I said, staring at the screen. The image of Santiago's smiling face from the news report burned into my retinas. "Julian had a backup plan. He always did. He didn't just have offshore accounts—he had a sister."
My father stiffened. "Isabella Rivas."
"Who the hell is Isabella Rivas?" Marcus asked, looking between us.
"The black sheep of the Rivas family," my father growled. "She left Mexico thirty years ago. She’s a high-ranking commander in a private European military corporation. She makes her money supplying weapons to war zones. She doesn't care about corporate shipping lines or Wall Street. She cares about blood loyalty."
My phone buzzed on the table. It wasn't a call. It was a text message from a blocked satellite number.
I picked it up. It was a live video file.
I pressed play. The video showed the exterior of our Connecticut estate—the secure bunker where Leo was supposed to be hidden. The camera panned down to show four of our elite guards lying motionless in the grass, their chests stained with crimson.
The video cut to a dark room. A woman’s hand, wearing a heavy silver ring with the Rivas family crest, reached down to gently stroke Leo's hair while he slept in his portable crib.
May you like
A voice spoke from behind the camera—a cold, metallic female voice with a thick Castilian accent:
"You took my brother’s life, Valeria. Now, the debt transfers to the child. Come to the old Rivas foundry in Veracruz. Alone. You have twenty-four hours before I open the cage."
