Chapter 7 - The Councilwoman’s Betrayal
Arthur stood up instantly, stepping in front of Leo and the puppy, his hand sliding into his trench coat pocket as if gripping something heavy. “How did you find us, Vance? I wiped our tracks at the manhole.”
Evelyn didn’t flinch. She leaned the iron crowbar against the brick wall and wiped a streak of soot from her forehead. “Arthur, please. Do you really think I spent ten years fighting city hall just to get outsmarted by a retired archivist with a flash drive and a grudge? I tracked the unique frequency of the RFID chip sewn into that mayoral pin.”
Leo clutched the blanket tighter around his shoulders, watching the two adults glare at each other in the dim penlight beam. The puppy let out a low, warning growl, its tiny teeth bared slightly at the newcomer.
“Easy, little guy,” Evelyn murmured, taking a slow, non-threatening step forward and holding out an open palm. “I’m not here to hurt you. If I wanted that pin, I could have taken it while Officer Miller was distracting you on the pavement.”
“Then why are you down here in the filth?” Arthur demanded, not relaxing his stance. “You have a political career to protect. Aligning yourself with a kidnapped child and a stray dog is career suicide.”
“My career ended the moment the mayor signed the demolition order for the east-side community center,” Evelyn replied bitterly, her eyes flashing with genuine anger. She looked down at Leo, her expression softening into deep sorrow. “They lied to everyone, Leo. They told the press that your family perished in a gas leak. But I saw the financial transfers. They locked you away because you’re the sole living heir to the estate, and your signature is required to liquidate the trust.”
Leo stared up at her, processing the heavy words through a haze of exhaustion. “My mom said we were going on a trip. She put me in the dark room.”
Evelyn knelt down on the damp concrete, ignoring the sludge seeping into the knees of her trousers. She reached out and gently touched the edge of Leo’s oversized jacket. “Your mother fought them until the very end, Leo. That’s why she managed to hide that pin in your blanket before they took her away to the sanitarium across the county line.”
Arthur slowly withdrew his hand from his pocket, letting out a long, weary sigh. He looked at the blueprint on the crate, then back at Evelyn. “If the administration knows she hid the pin here, they’ll lock down every exit within the hour. The financial district blockade is already activating.”
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Before Evelyn could answer, a loud, deep mechanical rumble shook the ceiling above them, followed by the sound of heavy metal gates slamming shut down the main drainage line.
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