Part 6: The Dockside Ambush
“Run!” Nora screamed, grabbing my arm and yanking me toward the narrow gap between two stacks of wooden crates.
Heavy car doors slammed shut behind us. Shouts echoed across the concrete as men in dark tactical jackets swarmed the pier, their flashlights cutting sharp beams through the thick fog.
“Over there! Catch them!” a harsh voice bellowed—a voice I recognized instantly as David Vance.
My heart hammered against my ribs as Nora and I scrambled behind a rusted shipping container. The damp chill of the night evaporated, replaced by a surge of pure adrenaline. We couldn't outrun them in the open, and the water was on our left. We were cornered.
“Dr. Lawson!” David’s voice echoed closer now, mocking and cold. “Come out, Emily. There’s nowhere to run. You and your little surrogate friend stepped into a game you were never equipped to win.”
Nora was hyperventilating, pressing her back against the corrugated metal wall, tears streaming down her face. “I’m sorry,” she whispered frantically. “They threatened my family. They said if I didn't carry the baby and disappear, my brother would never see parole.”
“We’ll get through this,” I whispered back, my mind racing as I scanned our surroundings. There had to be a way out—a maintenance ladder, a drainage tunnel, anything.
Suddenly, the screech of tires echoed from the main road. Another vehicle tore past the parked SUVs with reckless abandon. Headlights flashed wildly, illuminating the entire pier in a blinding white glare.
“What the hell is that?” David shouted, his men pausing their advance.
A sleek black sedan plowed directly into the side of one of the parked SUVs with a deafening metallic crunch, sending it careening sideways. Before the dust could settle, the driver’s side door flew open and Caleb leaped out, holding a heavy iron wrench he must’ve grabbed from his trunk.
“Caleb!” I cried out.
“Get down!” Caleb roared, charging past the barricade directly toward David’s group.
Surprise was on our side. David’s men hadn't expected backup, let alone a furious fertility tycoon wielding a wrench like a medieval weapon. Caleb caught one of the tactical agents off guard with a swift sweep of his arm, sending him crashing into the gravel.
“Emily! Nora! Now!” Caleb yelled over the chaos.
I didn't hesitate. I grabbed Nora’s hand and pulled her out from behind the shipping container, sprinting as fast as we could toward Caleb’s idling sedan.
David recovered quickly, lunging forward with a furious snarl. “Stop them!” he roared, drawing a heavy metal baton from his belt.
Caleb intercepted him mid-stride, colliding with his cousin in a brutal tackle that sent both men rolling onto the concrete.
“Caleb!” I screamed, opening the passenger door of the sedan and shoving Nora inside before scrambling into the back seat.
May you like
Caleb broke free from David’s grip, taking a hard punch to the jaw that sent a spray of blood into the air, but he scrambled up, sprinted toward the car, and dove through the driver’s side door just as two more guards converged on us.
He slammed his foot on the gas pedal. The tires spun furiously on the wet pavement, kicking up gravel before the car shot forward, smashing past the remaining blockade and tearing out onto the main highway into the safety of the night.
