Chapter 7 - The Burner Phone
The wind howled through the gorge as Dante pulled a small, military-grade satellite burner phone from the inner lining of his ruined suit jacket. The device was heavily dented, caked in dried mud, but when he pressed the power button, a small green LED light blinked to life.
"Satellite relay is encrypted," Dante muttered, tapping a complex sequence of numbers into the battered keypad. "Marcus thinks I'm rotting in the dirt. It's time to remind him that the dead don't stay down."
Natalie watched nervously from across the cave floor, keeping a protective hand on Liam, who was still wrapped in the thermal blanket sleeping soundly beside Goliath.
"Who are you calling? The police?" Natalie asked.
"The police in Carbon County are on Marcus's payroll," Dante replied grimly, holding the phone to his ear. "I'm calling the only man in federal law enforcement who hates Marcus more than I do."
The phone rang three times before a sharp, gruff voice answered on the other end. "State your authorization code."
"Vance-Zero-One," Dante rasped into the receiver. "And before you trace this signal, Agent Miller, let me save you the trouble: I'm currently standing on a mountain in your backyard, and I'm very much alive."
A sharp intake of breath echoed through the speaker. "Dante? The entire underworld has been mourning your funeral for a week. Marcus Vance just took over the board of directors yesterday."
"Marcus is a corporate thief wearing a dead man's crown, Miller. And he's currently running a cartel pipeline through the Port of Philadelphia," Dante said, his voice dropping into a razor-sharp command. "I have the ledger. I have the digital backups. And I'm ready to hand over every single asset, warehouse, and offshore account the Ironwood Syndicate owns on one condition."
"Name it," Agent Miller replied instantly, the sound of a computer keyboard clacking rapidly in the background.
"Total immunity and federal protection for a civilian nurse and her son who saved my life tonight. If a single hair on their heads is harmed by your dirty task force or Marcus's goons, the deal is off, and the entire ledger goes public to the international press."
A heavy pause hung on the line. "Done. Where are you?"
"Blackwood Ridge, sector four. Send an unmarked chopper to the extraction point at the old fire watchtower in twenty minutes. And Miller?" Dante added, his eyes locking onto Natalie. "Bring a medical transport. We have wounded."
May you like
Dante clicked the receiver off and tossed the satellite phone onto the dirt floor. He turned to Natalie, a faint, respectful shadow of a smile touching the corner of his lips.
"The cavalry is inbound," Dante said.
