Chapter 9 - The Trial of the Bloodline
Two hours later, a convoy of three black armored sedans tore through the Lincoln Tunnel into the heart of Manhattan.
The sky over New York was overcast and grey, a sharp cold wind blowing off the Hudson River as the vehicles pulled up outside the imposing marble facade of the Manhattan Reserve Bank on Wall Street.
Victor stepped out of the lead sedan, wearing his dark wool coat, his gray-blue eyes scanning the busy street. Ten senior Calder lieutenants in black suits surrounded the entrance, securing a fifty-yard perimeter around the bank.
Vincent Hale opened the door of the second sedan, helping Clare and little Maisie out onto the pavement. Maisie was wearing her green polka-dot dress under a warm wool coat, her green clips holding her blonde hair, still cradling her gray stuffed rabbit in her arm.
"Is this where Daddy’s secret is?" Maisie asked innocently, looking up at the massive bronze doors of the bank.
"Yes, little one," Victor said, crouching down beside her and taking her small hand in his broad palm. "Today we bring your father home."
They walked into the grand marble lobby of the bank. The bank manager, a tall man in a three-piece suit who had served the Calder family for thirty years, bowed respectfully and led them down into the subterranean vault wing.
They stopped before Vault 714—a massive steel door equipped with a silver keyhole and a glowing blue biometric touch-pad.
Victor inserted the heavy silver key into the lock, turning it with a metallic click.
The biometric pad lit up with a soft chime.
Victor looked down at Maisie. "Put your thumb right here, sweetheart."
Maisie stepped up on her tiptoes and pressed her tiny thumb against the blue glass scanner.
A green light flashed across the console, followed by a loud pneumatic hiss as the heavy six-ton steel door slowly swung open.
Inside the small, pristine room sat a single metallic briefcase resting on a marble pedestal.
Victor walked forward, opening the briefcase. Inside lay two items: an encrypted satellite tracking drive displaying a pulsing red dot in upstate New York, and a stack of signed legal documents transferring full ownership of the Calder shipping empire to Maisie Nolan upon her twenty-first birthday.
Victor picked up the tracking drive. The pulsing red dot was located inside an abandoned military hospital near Plattsburgh.
"We have his exact location," Victor said, his voice ringing with absolute authority.
Vincent Hale touched his earpiece, his face turning grim. "Boss... our scouts near Plattsburgh just reported movement. The Vane syndicate is moving their remaining forces to liquidate the facility before we arrive."
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Victor snapped the briefcase shut, his gray-blue eyes locking onto Vincent with terrifying resolve.
"Tell the New York crews to assemble," Victor commanded. "We’re going to war."
