Chapter 9 – The First Shot
Chapter 9 – The First Shot
The gunshot echoed through the neighborhood.
Then came another.
And another.
The peaceful suburban street instantly became a battlefield.
"Officer down!"
The desperate voice crackled through every agent's earpiece.
Daniel reacted first.
"Return fire only if you have a confirmed target!"
"Protect the civilians!"
FBI agents rushed into position.
Ballistic shields slammed into place.
Several agents pulled Grant and Vanessa away from the doorway.
I sprinted toward the staircase.
"Lily!"
She was still standing at the top step.
Frozen.
Terrified.
The crack of another rifle shot shattered a second-floor window.
Glass exploded across the hallway.
An agent grabbed Lily just as another bullet struck the wall behind her.
"Move!"
He carried her toward the master bedroom.
I followed close behind.
More gunfire erupted outside.
Controlled bursts.
Professional.
Not random shooting.
Whoever Victor had hired knew exactly what they were doing.
Inside the bedroom, the agent locked the door.
"Lily."
I knelt in front of her.
"Look at me."
She was shaking so hard she couldn't speak.
I cupped her face gently.
"You remember the safety game we practiced?"
She nodded.
"The quiet game?"
Another nod.
"I need you to play it now."
She squeezed Bunny tightly.
"I can do that."
"I know you can."
The agent positioned himself beside the window.
He carefully peeked through the curtains.
"They're moving."
"Three toward the east fence."
"Two covering the driveway."
His voice suddenly sharpened.
"Wait..."
"They're retreating."
That didn't make sense.
Professional attackers didn't retreat after firing only a handful of shots.
Not unless...
It was a distraction.
My stomach tightened.
I activated my earpiece.
"Daniel."
"Check the front."
"They're pulling us away from something."
A pause.
Then Daniel answered.
"We've lost visual on Victor."
Everything inside me went cold.
"What?"
"The SUV is empty."
"He disappeared."
I looked at the bedroom window.
The burning FBI vehicle continued sending thick black smoke into the sky.
The smoke drifted directly across the front yard.
Blocking nearly every camera.
Blocking every sniper's line of sight.
It hadn't been an attack.
It had been cover.
Victor had planned every second.
Daniel's voice exploded through the radio.
"All units!"
"Find Victor Soren!"
"Now!"
Agents spread across the property.
The backyard.
The garage.
The pool house.
The tree line.
Nothing.
He had vanished.
Downstairs, Grant suddenly shouted.
"The basement!"
I raced toward the hallway.
Daniel met me halfway.
"What basement?"
Grant pointed toward the kitchen.
"The wine cellar."
"It connects to an old service tunnel."
My heart skipped.
"You never told me there was a tunnel."
Grant looked ashamed.
"I forgot."
I stared at him.
"You forgot?"
"It hasn't been used in years."
Daniel was already moving.
"Show us."
We rushed downstairs.
Grant led us into the pantry.
Behind a wall of wooden shelves sat a steel door.
Hidden.
Nearly invisible.
One of the agents pulled it open.
Cold air rushed upward.
Concrete stairs disappeared into darkness.
Daniel raised his flashlight.
Fresh muddy footprints covered the steps.
"He came this way."
The tunnel smelled damp.
Old.
Dust covered most of the floor.
Except for one narrow path.
Someone had walked through recently.
Very recently.
We descended carefully.
Flashlights cut through the darkness.
The tunnel stretched farther than I expected.
Grant spoke quietly.
"It was built during Prohibition."
"The previous owner used it to move liquor."
Daniel looked back at him.
"And you never thought to mention it?"
Grant lowered his eyes.
"I honestly forgot."
No one believed him.
After nearly two hundred feet, the tunnel split into two directions.
Daniel studied the footprints.
"Left."
We followed.
The passage ended beneath an abandoned greenhouse at the edge of the property.
The trapdoor above stood open.
Moonlight poured inside.
Daniel climbed out first.
His flashlight swept across the overgrown garden.
Nothing.
Then an agent called from behind the greenhouse.
"Sir!"
"We found something!"
We hurried over.
A black tactical backpack lay abandoned in the weeds.
Inside were spare magazines.
Medical supplies.
Night-vision goggles.
And a folded map of the neighborhood.
Several homes had been marked with red circles.
Mine.
The elementary school.
A nearby park.
Lily's dance studio.
Every place my daughter visited regularly.
I clenched my fists.
"He studied her routine."
Daniel nodded grimly.
"For months."
Nora examined another pocket.
"There's more."
She pulled out a slim tablet computer.
Its screen was still on.
A tracking application filled the display.
At the center of the map...
A blinking blue dot.
Daniel frowned.
"What are we looking at?"
Nora's face went pale.
"The tracker..."
"The signal is still active."
I immediately understood.
"The rabbit."
She shook her head.
"No."
"I disabled the rabbit."
She slowly turned the tablet toward me.
The blinking blue dot...
Wasn't inside the house.
It was moving.
Slowly.
Heading south.
Toward the highway.
Daniel stared at the screen.
"If it isn't the rabbit..."
My heart began pounding.
There was only one possibility left.
Someone else...
Somewhere nearby...
May you like
Was carrying another tracker.
One that belonged to Lily.
