Chapter 15: Revelation

The call arrived at 2:47 a.m., jolting Grace from her restless sleep on Elena's couch. Max's name on her phone screen made her heart race…….they had agreed to maintain radio quiet at night unless there was an emergency.

"Derek's gone," Max announced without hesitation.

"What do you mean gone?"

"Santos called." Six hours ago, surveillance lost him. He is not at his motel or any of his known destinations. It's as if he disappeared."

Grace sat awake, adrenaline coursing through her system. "That does not make sense. "He's been so visible and predictable……."

"That is what Santos said. Derek's entire pattern changed overnight.

Elena emerged in the hallway, roused by Grace's words. "What's happening?"

"Derek disappeared," Grace stated hurriedly, before returning to Max. "Where are you?"

"Safe house downtown. Santos wants you here right away."

"On my way."

The trip through vacant streets felt weird, as if we were moving through a quarantined city. Every shadow could conceal a threat, and every parked automobile could hold Derek or his associates. The GPS tracker in her pocket seemed like both a lifeline and a target.

The safe house was an inconspicuous flat above a 24-hour laundromat, with blackout drapes

covering the windows and a steel-plated door. Santos greeted her at the door, his demeanor stern.

"We may have underestimated him," he remarked without elaborating.

Inside, Max moved about the little living room like a caged animal. "He played us. "The entire surveillance routine, the predictable behavior…... .It was a theater."

"Explain," Grace asked.

Santos spread images on a foldable table. "We were focused on Derek's harassment campaign, but he was working on something else. These were taken at various areas throughout the city over the last week."

Derek was photographed meeting with a variety of persons, some dressed in business clothes and

others with the harsh look of professional criminals. Money changed hands, documents were exchanged, and handshakes indicated that deals had been completed.

"He wasn't trying to coerce Max into joining his operation," Santos explained. "He was using Max as leverage to establish credibility with new partners."

"I don't understand," Grace replied.

"Consider it from Derek's perspective. He leaves prison with a reputation but no present contacts. He needs to prove he's still relevant and dangerous. What better method than to openly deceive a wealthy businessman who assisted in his incarceration?

The understanding struck Grace like a physical punch. "We were never a target. "We were the advertisement."

"Every day Derek had you look over your shoulder, every night he kept you awake, and every security measure you installed……..it was all evidence of his power. He was demonstrating to potential partners that Derek Voss could still get people to dance to his music."

potential partners that Derek Voss could still get people to dance to his music."

Max stopped pacing. "Which means now that he's established his credibility..."

"He doesn't need you anymore," Santos concluded. "The harassment fulfilled its goal. Derek has moved on to bigger things.

"That's good news, right?" Grace inquired eagerly. "If he doesn't need us, maybe he'll leave us alone."

"Or maybe he'll tie up loose ends to avoid future complications."

The foreboding connotation hovered in the air, like smoke. Derek's disappearance was not a retreat; it was a prelude to something definitive.

"What kind of operation is he building?" Max asked.

Santos scrolled through more photos. "As far as we can determine, it's sophisticated. Money laundering via legal enterprises, drug distribution networks, and possibly human trafficking. The type of firm that generates millions and must eliminate security concerns."

"Security risks, like witnesses to his harassment campaign," Grace remarked quietly.

"Exactly."

Elena, who had been mute during the briefing, eventually spoke up. "So what's our move?"

"Officially? We wait for Derek to emerge and hope to apprehend him before he escalates."

"And unofficially?"

Santos examined each of them in turn. "Unofficially, people in Derek's position do not typically leave loose ends untied. If he intends to do something permanent, it will happen soon.

"Define soon," Max stated.

"Hours, not days."

The stark chronology sent shivers through the room. All of their careful planning, intricate counter-surveillance operations, and attempts to obtain evidence were pointless if Derek had already moved on from using them as psychological props.

"There's something else," Santos admitted grudgingly. "Derek's new collaborators are not local talent. "We've identified at least two people with ties to organized crime families in Chicago and Detroit."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning if Derek has decided your liabilities, he has access to people who specialize in making liabilities disappear."

Grace felt the walls of their carefully built strategy crumble around them. They had been so intent on outmaneuvering Derek that they had overlooked the wider game he was playing. While they were gathering evidence of harassment, he was establishing an empire that rendered their lives meaningless.

"We need federal protection," Elena explained. "Witness protection, relocation, something."

"That takes time, which we don't have," Santos responded. "And it requires Derek to commit crimes that we can establish. We are currently experiencing harassment, as well as breaking and

entering. "Not exactly RICO territory."

"What about the photographs?" Meetings with known criminals?

"Association is not conspiracy. "We need recorded conversations, financial transactions, and concrete evidence of criminal planning."

Max laughed angrily. "So we're back where we started, except now Derek has professional killers on speed dial."

"Not exactly where we started," Grace answered slowly, as an idea began to emerge. "Santos, you said Derek needs to prove his relevance to maintain credibility with his new partners?"

"That's the working theory."

"What if we gave him an opportunity to prove it in a way that incriminates him?"

"I don't like where this is going," Max stated.

"What if we made ourselves too valuable to kill, at least until Derek has what he needs from us?"

Santos leaned forward with eagerness. "Keep talking." "Derek's original demand was for Max to assist in establishing his operation." What if Max reached out, claimed the pressure had finally broken him, and offered to help?"

"Absolutely not," Max replied quickly.

"It would be supervised, recorded, with full law enforcement backup….."

"I told you no, Grace. I'm not going into Derek's web voluntarily."

"You might not have a choice," Santos explained gently. "If Derek's planning to eliminate you both anyway, this might be our only chance to get him on tape committing serious federal crimes."

"Or it might be our only chance to walk directly into an execution."

The room grew silent as they considered their terrible situation. Each step forward seemed to lead to greater risk, and each choice had the potential for disastrous consequences.

Grace's phone vibrated with a text message. Unknown number.

Time is up. We need to talk. Today. Come alone, or not at all.

Below the message was an address and a time: 6pm

"He's surfaced," Grace said Santos, showing him the screen.

"That's not an invitation," Santos noted. "That's a summons."

"To what?"

"Probably your execution."

As they glanced at Derek's message, Grace recognized that their complex planning and meticulous preparations had been rendered ineffective. Derek was no longer playing their game.

He was bringing it to an end.