THE ASHES OF PROMISE: HOW A BROKEN FAMILY RECLAIMED ITS SOUL FROM THE BRINK

Elena spun around, her heart leaping into her throat, but the heavy hand on her shoulder only tightened. It was Marcus Thorne. Up close, his eyes were a startling, dead shade of grey, completely devoid of warmth or human empathy.

“Where is my father?” Elena demanded, her voice shaking with a mixture of terror and fierce defiance as she clutched her black handbag against her chest.

Thorne smiled, a thin, cruel parting of his lips that didn’t reach his eyes. “Your father is currently experiencing the consequences of poor financial planning. Just like your mother did.”

Before Thorne could drag Elena away into the shadows of the maintenance corridor, Detective Vance lunged out from behind a concrete pillar, tackling the enforcer hard to the ground. The two men hit the tiled floor with a brutal, sickening thud, sending a flurry of commuter pamphlets flying into the air.

“Run, Elena! Get out of the station!” Vance roared, grunting as Thorne slammed a heavy elbow into his ribs.

Elena hesitated for a split second, torn between fleeing for her safety and helping the man trying to save her life. But Vance caught her eye and gave a frantic, violent shake of his head.

“Go!” Vance screamed.

Elena turned and bolted down the concourse, clutching the pocket watch and the photo of her bound father. The ticking of the watch grew faster, its mechanical rhythm sounding like a countdown to disaster.

She burst out of the station doors into the pouring rain, her purple knit sweater soaked and clinging to her shivering frame. She scanned the empty street for a taxi, but the rain-slicked asphalt was completely deserted.

Suddenly, a sleek black sedan pulled up beside the curb with a sharp screech of tires. The rear door swung open automatically from the inside.

A soft, familiar voice called out from the shadowy interior of the car, stopping Elena dead in her tracks.

“Get in, Elena. We don’t have much time if we want to save your father.”