Chapter 16 - The Raid on the Harbor
By Sunday afternoon, the digital footprint from the anonymous package had led the task force straight to an abandoned maritime warehouse district on the edge of the city harbor. Intelligence reports indicated it was the operational command center for the syndicate's regional logistics network—and the place where the anonymous threats against my family had been originated.
I stood beside a heavily armored tactical vehicle parked two blocks away from the dilapidated brick warehouse, wearing a ballistic vest over my dark suit, my service weapon holstered at my hip. Surrounding me were thirty heavily armed federal tactical operators, their rifles raised, waiting for my final go-code.
"Director Ellison, drone reconnaissance confirms three hostile actors inside the main bay," the tactical team leader reported, speaking rapidly into his radio headset. "We have encrypted comms chatter indicating they are attempting to purge physical servers and burn hard drives before making a run for a waiting boat docked at the pier."
"Not on my watch," I said, stepping forward. "Move in. Secure the servers, detain every last one of them, and leave a clear path to the main office."
"Breach, breach, breach!" the team leader shouted.
The heavy steel doors of the warehouse blew inward with a deafening blast of percussion charges. Shouts, flashbang grenades, and the sound of heavy boots echoing across concrete filled the damp air. I walked into the warehouse behind the second wave of operators, watching with cold satisfaction as heavily armed men in black tactical gear slammed the syndicate members onto the concrete floor and slapped zip-ties around their wrists.
In the center of the office area, standing beside a smoking shredder and a stack of burning financial documents, was a man in an expensive gray suit—the regional director of the syndicate, a man who thought federal investigators were easily bought or easily scared.
He glared at me as two agents forced him onto his knees, his face twisted in rage. "You have no idea what you've done, lady. You think you're safe? The people behind us own half the politicians in this city. You're dead."
I walked slowly toward him, stopping just inches away. I reached down, picked up a surviving ledger from the edge of his desk, and tossed it onto his lap.
May you like
"Tell your bosses that the person doing the work doesn't have to announce it," I whispered, my voice ice-cold. "And tell them that federal custody is the safest place they're going to be for the rest of their lives."
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