Chapter 13 - Darkness at the Hospital
The sudden blackout across the city skyline plunged the waterfront into deep, impenetrable shadows, save for the emergency flares flickering in the distance. Clara’s phone buzzed violently in her coat pocket. She pulled it out, ignoring Victor for a second to look at the screen. A frantic text from Chloe lit up the darkness: The hospital backup generators just failed. Uncle Arthur's room—someone is trying to cut the oxygen lines!
Clara’s blood ran cold. She looked up at Victor, whose smile had vanished, replaced by a mask of cold calculation.
"You didn't just come here to gloat," Clara whispered, her voice sharp with sudden panic. "You planned a second strike."
"Arthur knows too much about the legacy holdings," Victor said calmly, tossing his cigarette into the dark water below. "He should have stayed in the care facility where we put him. Some family secrets are meant to stay buried in the ground."
Clara didn't hesitate. She turned on her heel and sprinted back toward where the taxi was parked, but as she reached the pavement, the cab's engine sputtered and died, its battery completely drained by an electromagnetic pulse or remote override.
Victor’s voice echoed across the concrete behind her. "You can't outrun a system you helped build, Clara. The city grid is mine. The hospital security protocols are mine. By midnight, there won't be a single witness left to testify against the Vance family."
Clara pulled out her phone, trying to dial emergency services, but the screen flashed a single error message: No Network Coverage. The blackout had isolated the entire harbor district from the rest of the city. She realized she was entirely on her own. She couldn't rely on the feds, and she couldn't rely on the local police. If Arthur was going to survive the night, she had to get back to St. Jude Memorial Hospital on foot.
She tossed off her trench coat, letting her ivory slip dress and practical wedding shoes take the brunt of the wet, gravelly ground, and started running toward the main road leading away from the shipyard.
Behind her, the sound of a heavy engine revving shattered the quiet night air. Twin headlights cut through the fog as a black SUV surged out from behind a rusted warehouse, accelerating directly down the cracked concrete road in her direction.
May you like
Clara threw herself to the side just as the SUV roared past, kicking up a storm of gravel and water. The vehicle skidded to a halt, blocking the only exit route off the pier, and the driver's door swung open with a heavy metallic click.
---
