Chapter 16 - The Trap at Union Station
David chose Union Station.
Public.
Crowded.
Cameras everywhere.
He thought that made him smart.
It actually made the federal agents very happy.
For forty-eight hours, we prepared.
The FBI joined the operation after reviewing Daniel’s recordings and Ethan’s confession.
Special Agent Carla Reynolds led the team.
She was forty-something, sharp-eyed, and unimpressed by everyone.
“Do not improvise,” she told me.
“I won’t.”
“Everyone says that.”
“I mean it.”
She looked at Marcus.
“She always this confident?”
“Yes.”
“Dangerous combination.”
The deal was simple.
I would meet David near the Great Hall at noon.
I would carry a folder containing fake settlement documents.
He would bring the original Project Harbor archive.
If he admitted to the extortion or attempted to exchange stolen documents for money, agents would arrest him.
Thomas hated every second.
“You don’t have to do this.”
“Yes, I do.”
“You have agents.”
“He won’t trust anyone else.”
“What if he has a weapon?”
“Security will search the area.”
“That isn’t an answer.”
I touched his face.
“Thomas.”
His eyes were full of fear.
Not control.
Fear.
There was a difference.
“I spent years married to a man who thought protecting me meant controlling me,” I said. “You are allowed to be scared. But you cannot decide for me.”
He nodded slowly.
“You’re right.”
“I know.”
That made him laugh despite himself.
At 11:52 a.m., I walked into Union Station wearing a beige coat and carrying a leather folder.
Agents were everywhere.
Pretending to read newspapers.
Buy coffee.
Check train boards.
Marcus watched from the mezzanine.
Arthur stayed in a command vehicle.
No Lily.
Absolutely no Lily.
At 12:04, David appeared.
I barely recognized him.
He wore a dark coat over a gray sweater.
His face was leaner.
His hair longer.
But the arrogance remained.
He approached casually.
“Sarah.”
“David.”
“You look good.”
“Don’t.”
He smiled.
“Still cold.”
“You sent a man to our daughter’s bedroom window.”
His smile faded.
“I never told him to touch her.”
“That sentence doesn’t help you.”
He sat across from me.
“Do you have the papers?”
“Do you have the archive?”
He placed a small key on the table.
“Locker 214.”
“Where?”
“Not here.”
“Then we don’t have a deal.”
“You haven’t changed.”
“I have.”
He studied me.
“No. You were always like this. I just didn’t see it.”
“Like what?”
“Ruthless.”
I almost laughed.
“You ignored your dying daughter while sleeping with another woman on a yacht, David. Don’t lecture me about character.”
His jaw tightened.
“There it is. The performance.”
“Where is the archive?”
“Sign first.”
I opened the folder.
“These documents transfer six million dollars into a settlement escrow pending verification.”
His eyes lit up.
Greed.
Always greed.
“And visitation?”
“No.”
His expression hardened.
“That was part of the agreement.”
“I agreed to discuss it.”
“She’s my daughter.”
“You used her as leverage.”
“I never hurt her.”
“You terrified her.”
“I scared you.”
“She’s eight.”
For one second, something like shame crossed his face.
Then it vanished.
“You took everything.”
“You stole everything.”
“You destroyed my career.”
“You embezzled from your company.”
“You turned Arthur against me.”
“You abandoned Lily.”
He leaned forward.
“I was overwhelmed.”
“She was dying.”
“I didn’t know.”
“You saw the picture.”
Silence.
His eyes dropped.
That was the first time I saw it.
Not remorse.
Recognition.
He knew there was no argument left.
Then he whispered, “I can still fix things.”
“No.”
His hand disappeared beneath his coat.
Every agent in the station shifted.
My heartbeat slammed.
David pulled out a phone.
Not a weapon.
He showed me a live video feed.
My blood froze.
Lily’s school playground.
Children outside.
I stopped breathing.
“What did you do?”
“Nothing.”
“Who is filming that?”
“Someone who follows instructions.”
Across the station, Agent Reynolds moved.
David noticed.
His expression changed.
“You brought police.”
“David—”
He grabbed the folder and ran.
“FEDERAL AGENTS!”
Chaos exploded.
David shoved through commuters.
Marcus sprinted down the stairs.
I stood frozen, staring at the phone he had dropped.
The live video continued.
The camera moved closer toward Lily’s school.
Then a man’s voice said:
“Where is she?”
May you like
I screamed.
“LILY!”
