Chapter 3 - The Shadows of a 30-Year Past
The mechanical buzz of the decryption software continued to log every transaction as I called Poppy back on our encrypted line.
"Poppy," I said, my voice as cold as iron. "We're not dealing with a simple domestic dispute or a man with a gambling addiction."
"Gavin is running active offshore routing channels for the Vanguard Pharma syndicate. He's been using Hannah's domestic accounts as his primary mule shield."
"Taylor," Poppy’s voice dropped into a stern, clinical tone. "If he's tied to Vanguard, he isn't working alone. They have eyes on the Princeton municipal board."
"I don't care who holds their leash, Poppy," I replied, staring at my daughter's forged signature on the screen.
"They targeted my family. That means they just walked onto a battlefield they aren't equipped to survive."
I pulled up my old military tactical database, retrieving the active service records of three former intelligence analysts who still owed me their lives.
Within twenty minutes, our private secure chatroom was open, and the data from Gavin's hidden partition was being systematically cross-referenced with federal tracking logs.
Gavin believed his spotless white shirts, his luxury gated community house, and his charming smile made him untouchable to the local authorities.
May you like
He didn't realize that in my world, a pretty face is just a high-value target waiting for the coordinates to lock.
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