Chapter 12 - The Waterfront
Emerging from the service basement into the blinding afternoon glare, Clara and Lily slipped into a municipal bus heading east toward the port. They rode in silence, crouched low in the rear seats beneath the curious eyes of commuters. Clara monitored Julian’s phone; the encrypted ledger was broadcasting a counter-surveillance ping, slowly revealing the layout of Berth Nine.
The docks smelled of salt brine, rusting iron, and diesel fuel. Huge container cranes loomed over the waterfront like skeletal beasts. The twins stepped off the bus two stops early, using the shadows of stacked freight containers to approach Berth Nine unseen.
Through the maze of rusted steel boxes, Lily heard Julian’s voice again—not from the phone, but echoing faintly across the wet concrete. He was tied to an iron bollard near the water’s edge, his face bruised, eyes glazed from the lingering neurotoxin. Standing before him was Marcus, accompanied by Evelyn and three armed mercenaries.
"Where did the ledger upload, Julian?" Marcus demanded, pointing a weapon at Julian's chest. "Give me the root authorization, or I send men to tear the city apart until your daughters are found."
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Julian raised his head, blood trickling from his split lip. He didn't look at Marcus. His gaze shifted past the containers, locking onto the flash of white fabric hiding behind a stack of wooden crates.
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