We didn't stay to watch the fire die out.
Within an hour, an unmarked tactical van transported Noah, Julian, Marcus, and me to a secure private hangar at Dallas Love Field.
Armed security contractors surrounded the perimeter.
Noah lay sleeping on a leather couch inside the executive lounge, exhausted from the chaos.
I sat beside him, watching Julian pace in front of a giant tactical map laid across the conference table.
Detective Miller and two federal agents were leaning over the paper.
“Pier 14 is an abandoned shipping dock on the Trinity River,” Miller said, tapping a red marker against the map.
“It’s completely isolated.”
“Industrial warehouses on three sides, water on the fourth.”
“If Richard Sterling is waiting there, he has snipers positioned.”
Julian didn't look up from the map.
“He wants the bearer certificates.”
“Forty million dollars in untraceable international bonds my father locked away.”
“Julian, you cannot go down there alone,” one of the federal agents warned.
“He won't negotiate.”
“He burned your house to make a statement.”
“I’m not going alone,” Julian said coldly.
He turned toward the door.
A tall man in a tailored gray suit stepped into the lounge.
He carried a silver metal briefcase.
I recognized him immediately.
Carter Davis.
Julian’s personal attorney, whom the conspirators had tried to frame during the initial panic.
Carter set the briefcase on the table and popped the latches.
Inside were stacks of thick, embossed bond certificates stamped with Swiss seals.
“They’re ready, Julian,” Carter said quietly.
“Every serial number is embedded with micro-transponders.”
“The moment Sterling touches these papers, satellite tracking triggers within five seconds.”
Julian looked at the bonds.
Then he looked across the room at Noah.
“Rachel,” Julian called out.
I stood up, stepping toward the table.
“Yes, Mr. Whitmore?”
“The Gulfstream is fueled on the tarmac.”
“In thirty minutes, you and Noah will take off for Zurich.”
“Marcus will escort you with four armed operatives.”
My heart clenched.
“You’re sending us away?”
“I’m keeping you alive,” Julian said, stepping close to me.
“Sterling knows you saved Noah.”
“He knows you are the witness who broke Vanessa’s story.”
“If he realizes he can't get to me, he will hunt you.”
I looked him dead in the eye.
“I’m not running while you walk into an ambush at midnight, Mr. Whitmore.”
Julian stared at me, surprised.
“Rachel, this is not your war.”
“I took a hot iron to my face for this baby,” I said, my voice steady and firm.
“I held him while your family tried to tear this house down.”
“He called me Mama an hour ago.”
I pointed at the map on the table.
“Tell me what the plan is.”