The night four men trapped me in a Walmart parking lot, I begged them to walk away because I knew exactly what would happen if they didn't

Elias made three phone calls using a heavily encrypted satellite link. Within an hour, he had a location.

"Vance is operating out of a private aviation hangar at a small county airfield forty miles from here," Elias reported. "He's waiting for his team to bring him the drive. When they report back that they failed, he'll board a private jet and disappear to a non-extradition country."

"Then we make sure he misses his flight," I said.

I left Maya in the hidden root cellar of the cabin with a locked steel door, a radio, and strict instructions not to open it for anyone but me or Elias.

We took the truck and drove through the pre-dawn darkness. The sky was just beginning to turn a bruised purple when we reached the perimeter of the airfield.

Through my binoculars, I counted six armed mercenaries patrolling the exterior of Hangar 4. A sleek Gulfstream jet sat on the tarmac, its engines already whining as they warmed up.

"He's getting ready to run," Elias whispered, lying in the tall grass beside me.

"Take out the exterior guards," I ordered. "Quietly. I'm going in for Vance."

Elias nodded. He raised his suppressed rifle, peering through the thermal scope. "On your mark, Cal."

I slipped out of the grass and sprinted silently toward the side of the hangar, using cargo crates for cover. When I reached the metal wall, I tapped my radio twice.

Pfft. Pfft. Pfft.

The suppressed shots were barely whispers in the wind. Three guards dropped simultaneously. Before the other three could react, Elias fired again.

The perimeter was clear.

I slid through a side access door, entering the massive, echoing hangar. It was dimly lit. At the far end, surrounded by computer monitors and tactical gear, stood Jonathan Vance.

He was dressed in an expensive suit, yelling into a phone.

"What do you mean you lost them?! Burn the woods down if you have to, just find her!"

I stepped out from the shadows, raising my weapon.

"You don't need to burn the woods, Jonathan," I called out, my voice echoing off the metal walls. "I'm right here."