Novel-novel oleh Mighty Pen

ANNA’S POVThe boat was cutting the rough water and Matt kept his hands locked on the wheel. The windshield was struck by hard sheets of rain. I was holding on to the edge of the console and the city skyline was becoming smaller behind us. My blazer was wet through. My shoes left pools of water on the floor. I didn’t care. I simply stared at the ledger on my knees.Michael was close to the stern with phone close to his ear and his voice low. He was discussing with his head of security, routes, mapping exits. He hung up and walked back inside. He didn’t sit. He simply leant against the bulkhead and stared at me.You are gazing at it as though it were going to bite you, he said.“It already did.” I tapped the cover. Your mother approved the routing. She did not merely cover it up.“I know what it says.” He rubbed his wet hair. I simply did not anticipate that she would put it down in writing.“She didn’t write it for us.” I looked up. She wrote it to insure it. In case Don Basano would

MICHAEL’S POVThe handle turned. I drew back, drew my gun, and held it steady on the door-frame. The steel swung inwards. Don Alex came in first. Two sentinels were on his side. No armor. No drawn weapons. Cold eyes and just dark suits.He didn’t rush. He only glanced at the racks of servers, then at Anna, then at the ledger in her hands.Lay it aside, he said. Voice flat. “Before you get us all killed.”I didn’t lower the gun. “You locked the door.”I purchased us three minutes. He went in and bade his men to hold the door. The crew of the east gate is already violating. You do not walk out of the basement when they strike.Anna moved forward, holding the folder close to her. “Where’s my mother?”Don Alex clenched his jaw. He didn’t answer right away. He took out a burner phone and tapped the screen. A live feed loaded. The supply room. June was sitting at the desk. She was older, thinner, but her stance was firm. She was writing. Not hiding. Working.She is alive, said Don Alex. And

ANNA’S POVMatt left us three blocks outside the gates of the estate. The SUV drove away without Headlights. I held my shoulders down and walked with Michael. The rain had now fallen to a slow drizzle, and soaked through my blazer and stuck my hair to my neck. I didn’t care. I concentrated on the cameras on the perimeter, and counted the sweeps, how we moved between the blind areas.Michael proceeded, inspecting the chain-link fence around the service driveway. He didn’t hesitate. He simply slipped under the bottom rail, and motioned me to come with him. I fell on one knee, plucked through, and was on my feet before the mud seized my footwear. He did not turn his head back. He simply continued to walk towards the side door.You are aware of the blind spots, I said, and I kept my voice low.“I grew up here.” He had a look at the keypad next to the steel door. My mother rearranged the codes with the merger. She forgot that I had memorized the previous order before she began to trust gua

MICHAEL’S POVThe door frame splintered and hit the floor. Dust and drywall powder filled the kitchen. I fell on one knee and dragged Anna down behind the island. Two men passed through the smoke. Black tactical gear. Suppressed rifles. They worked with trained spacing, surveying corners then sweeping the room. Not Basano’s usual street crew. These were professionals.I pulled my pistol out of my waistband and put two bullets in the door frame. The noises were loud in the little kitchen. The first assailant jerked back and fired back. Bullets ate holes in the marble counter over my head. I lowered my head and looked at Anna. She was laid flat against the cabinets, breathing even, the ledger against her heart. She wasn’t panicking. She was following them.Sofia, I said, in a low voice. “Exit route.”Back fire escape, I replied, down the hall. Above sink. I will cover.Sofia entered the room. She no longer had a phone in her hand or a med kit. In her right hand she held a small pistol,

THE weight of the LEDger.ANNA’S POVMatt switched off the engine in the alley behind a walk-up of bricks. The sound of rain was beating the SUV roof and the sirens were drowned out. I had my hands flat on the folder in my lap. Brass key pierced my thigh with my blazer pocket. I was breathing evenly. I timed the seconds between Matt glancing in his mirrors and Michael surveying the street.We are all clear, said Matt, in a low voice. "Cameras loop in forty seconds. You have to move.Michael opened his door first. The cabin was struck by cold air. He didn't wait for me. He got out, looked around the alley, and held the back door open. I slipped down, with feet on wet sidewalks. I drew the blazer close and walked with him towards the back door.The door was opened, and Sofia was there. She had dark sweatpants and a loose knit sweater, with short hair behind her ears. She didn't smile. She simply moved aside and allowed us to enter.You are like you ran through a fence, you know, she sai

MICHAEL’S POVThe intercom was switched off. The stillness was absorbed in the buzz of the air conditioning. The red light on the control panel remained locked. I checked my phone. No bars. I checked the door. Reinforced steel. I tried the hinges. Solid. I unzipped my jacket and threw it over the security camera in the corner. Don Basano would not have a clean feed of what we did next, had he been watching.I turned to Anna. The ledger was still in her hands. Her knuckles were white. Her breathing was rapid, yet steady. She wasn’t panicking. She was calculating.Lay the file aside, I said. We are not in this place.She placed it on the metallic table. He is keeping an eye on the building. When he closes the vents we do not get air.He is bluffing, he wants us alive until he can figure out what we have just opened. Or he is buying time to get the money away. I went to the control panel, removed the cover plate using my keys and uncovered the wiring. I didn't need to hack it. All I had