Chapter 8 - THE TRAP CLOSES
Ray Miller didn't hesitate. Realizing the operation had exploded, he pulled his concealed handgun from his jacket and aimed it straight at Cameron’s chest.
"Stay back, West!" Ray shouted, his face breaking into a desperate sweat. "One step closer and I put a bullet in you! Jake, get the kid to the van!"
Jake sprinted out the side door into the alleyway with Hope kicking and screaming in his arms.
Cameron didn't even flinch at the gun pointed at his chest. He didn't blink.
"Marcus," Cameron said quietly to his lead security operative beside him.
Before Ray Miller could even pull the trigger, the lead operative stepped inside Ray’s reach, grabbed his wrist with a lightning-fast combat strike, disarmed the handgun with a sickening crack of broken fingers, and slammed Ray face-first onto the gymnasium floor.
Ray let out a agonizing scream as the operative pinned him to the wood with a knee to his spine.
Cameron didn't wait. He sprinted past the downed hitman, charging through the side exit into the rain-slicked alleyway.
Jake Mercer was ten feet away from the open black van, struggling to shove the frantic, screaming child into the back seat.
"Jake!" Cameron’s roar echoed through the alley like thunder.
Jake turned around in sheer terror, just in time to see Cameron West leaping across the pavement like a hunting panther.
Cameron grabbed Jake by the collar of his denim jacket, yanked him backward away from the van with unbelievable strength, and slammed him hard against the brick wall of the building.
Jake’s head rattled against the bricks, his grip on Hope breaking instantly.
Cameron caught Hope with one arm, pulling her securely against his chest, while using his other arm to pin Jake’s throat against the brick wall.
"Please! Please don't kill me!" Jake choked out, his eyes rolling back in terror as Cameron’s hand tightened around his neck. "A woman paid me! Victoria Vance! She paid my debts and gave me the papers!"
Cameron’s gray eyes burned with a dark, terrifying flame. "Where is she?"
"The... the abandoned warehouse on 4th Street in Newark!" Jake gasped, crying out in pain. "She’s waiting there for the van!"
Cameron shoved Jake hard onto the cold pavement of the alley, where his security team immediately swooped in, slamming handcuffs onto the weeping deadbeat.
Clara came running out the alley door, her face pale, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Hope! Oh God, Hope!"
Cameron turned, setting the little girl gently down into her mother’s waiting arms. Hope wrapped her arms around Clara’s neck, sobbing hysterically as Clara kissed her face a hundred times over.
"Are you okay? Are you hurt, baby?" Clara cried out.
"I'm okay, Mommy... Mr. Cameron saved me!" Hope sobbed, reaching out her small hand to hold onto Cameron’s coat.
Cameron knelt beside them on the damp pavement, taking both of their hands in his strong grip.
"They're done," Cameron said, his voice dropping into a firm, reassuring whisper. "No one is ever going to threaten this family again."
He stood up, looking at his lead security officer. "Keep Clara and Hope in the armored vehicle. Take them back to the estate under heavy guard."
"Where are you going, Mr. West?" the officer asked.
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Cameron pulled his phone from his pocket, dialing the Chief of Police directly as he walked toward his sleek black Sedan.
"I’m going to Newark," Cameron said coldly. "To finish this."
