Chapter 10 - Midnight Departure
The private aviation terminal at the municipal airfield was shrouded in heavy fog, casting ghostly shadows across the tarmac where a sleek twin-engine Gulfstream jet idled with its turbines screaming. Julian paced back and forth across the wet concrete near the boarding stairs, clutching a leather briefcase stuffed with bearer bonds and international passports. His phone was dead, his corporate empire had officially collapsed thirty minutes ago when the board voted him out unanimously, and his name was already flashing on the Interpol watchlists.
"Where is she?" Julian snapped at his private pilot, who stood near the cabin door checking his wristwatch nervously. "Chloe was supposed to meet me here twenty minutes ago!"
"We can't wait for her, Mr. Vanguard," the pilot replied urgently, scanning the perimeter fence where security patrols routinely made their rounds. "If we don't take off right now, the airspace will be locked down by federal authorities."
Julian cursed under his breath, turning toward the boarding ladder with the briefcase gripped tightly in his sweat-slicked palms. He took the first step upward, believing he had successfully slipped through the net and escaped absolute ruin.
Suddenly, the perimeter access gates behind him burst open with a deafening screech of twisted metal. Three unmarked black SUVs roared onto the tarmac, their high-beam headlights and flashing tactical strobes instantly blinding the pilot and bathing the private jet in harsh, inescapable white light.
Julian stumbled backward down the metal stairs, shielding his eyes with one arm as heavy tactical boots crunched rapidly across the wet asphalt. Four federal agents deployed from the leading vehicle with tactical carbines raised, moving with military precision to cut off any escape route toward the runway.
"Federal law enforcement! Stay right where you are!" a booming voice commanded over a tactical loudspeaker.
From the second SUV, Elena stepped out calmly into the mist, wearing her signature dark trousers and a heavy wool coat. She walked slowly toward the stranded fugitive, her expression completely devoid of emotion. Behind her, Marcus Vance and two state troopers flanked her sides, securing the perimeter.
Julian froze on the tarmac, his face turning an ash-gray color as he recognized the woman he had tried to destroy just forty-eight hours ago.
"You..." Julian whispered, his voice trembling with sheer disbelief as Elena stopped ten feet away from him. "You set me up. Again."
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"I didn't have to set you up, Julian," Elena said softly, her voice carrying clearly over the screaming whine of the jet turbines. "You built this trap yourself. I just helped you step inside."
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