Chapter 7 - The Message In The Static
The deafening wall of car alarms vibrated through the floorboards of the cruiser as Adrian pulled the digital recorder out of his pocket. The screen flashed a bright, blinding crimson, overriding the previous audio file with a new string of numerical data scrolling rapidly across the tiny display.
"Drop it!" Vance yelled over the noise, keeping his gun trained on the hooded figure standing fifty feet away in the glare of the high beams.
"It's a data transfer," Adrian shouted back, holding the device up so Vance could see the flashing screen. "They're uploading something to my phone!"
Before Vance could respond, the hooded figure near the black SUV turned sharply, hopped back into the driver's seat, and slammed the accelerator to the floor. The heavy vehicle roared forward, its tires squealing against the concrete before plunging into the descending ramp that led out to the city streets.
Vance cursed loudly, holstering his weapon and sliding behind the steering wheel of the cruiser.
"Hold on!" Vance commanded, putting the car into reverse and spinning the wheel hard to chase the fleeing SUV.
They tore out of the underground garage and burst into the cool night air of the city streets, but the black SUV was already gone, swallowed up by a labyrinth of heavy downtown traffic. Vance slammed his hand against the steering wheel in frustration.
"We lost him," Vance muttered, pulling the cruiser over to the curb and turning off the sirens.
Adrian sat in silence, staring down at his smartphone, which had automatically synced with the recorder via Bluetooth. A single PDF file sat on his screen, labeled with a file path that dated back three years—right around the time Adrian left his job at the shipping yard.
"What is it?" Vance asked, leaning over the center console.
"It's an internal audit report from my old company," Adrian whispered, his hands trembling as he swiped through the pages. "Shipping logs, financial transfers... and a signature."
"Whose signature?" Vance pressed.
"Mine," Adrian said, his voice catching in his throat. "Except I never signed these documents. Someone forged my name to embezzle two million dollars from the corporate retirement fund."
Vance stared at Adrian in the dim cabin light, his expression shifting from suspicion to grim realization.
"That's why they targeted your family today," Vance said quietly. "They needed a scapegoat who was desperate enough to take the fall, and desperate enough to keep his mouth shut."
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Adrian looked up from his phone, his blood running cold as a horrifying realization hit him. He reached for his phone to call Clara, but the screen suddenly flickered, displaying a live security feed of Lily’s hospital room—completely empty.
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