Chapter 8 - NIGHT ON THE HUDSON
Daniel grabbed Elena’s arm, hauling her toward the private escape elevator hidden behind the bookshelf. Bullets ripped through the luxury furniture behind them, sending feathers and wood splinters flying through the smoke-filled air.
"We have to go now, they aren't here to negotiate!" Daniel yelled, shoving the heavy bookshelf closed behind them as they tumbled into the metallic elevator shaft.
Elena caught her breath as the elevator descended at breakneck speed toward the underground parking garage. Her heart hammered against her ribs as she stared at Daniel, who was bleeding from a graze on his left arm.
"Who were those men, Daniel?" Elena demanded, her hands trembling as she wiped ash from her white pantsuit. "The Sterlings are in federal custody, they shouldn't have mercenaries!"
"Senator Sterling was just the public frontman for a much larger global syndicate, Elena," Daniel explained rapidly, checking the ammunition in his pistol. "The people who sent those men want the master private key to the Vance trust."
The elevator doors slid open into the subterranean garage, where an armored matte-black SUV sat idling in the shadows. Daniel pushed Elena into the passenger seat before sliding into the driver's side and slamming his foot onto the accelerator.
The heavy SUV roared out of the garage, bursting into the torrential rain soaking Fifth Avenue. Behind them, two high-powered black motorcycles instantly sped out of an alleyway, giving chase down the slick asphalt.
"Hang on!" Daniel shouted, throwing the SUV into a sharp drift around a corner toward the Hudson River Parkway. "They want to force us off the road before we reach the safehouse in New Jersey!"
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Muzzle flashes illuminated the dark night as the motorcyclists opened fire on the armored rear glass. Elena reached into the glove compartment, pulling out a remote security detonator programmed into the city's traffic matrix.
"Two can play this game," Elena muttered through gritted teeth, hitting the signal bypass button just as they approached a busy intersection.
