Chapter 131 Chapter 131

Chapter 131 Chapter 131
Chapter 131

Callahan mansion. War room essentially. Maps. Screens. Technology everywhere. Team working nonstop. Finding her finally.

Evan standing at computer, excited, shaking almost. “Sir, we found something. Property purchase month ago. Shell company traced back to Isabella.”

Landon jumped up from chair where he’d been sitting days, barely moving. “Where?”

“Cedar Lake upstate New York. Remote area. Cabin on water. Perfect hiding spot.”

“You’re sure?” Landon asked. Can’t handle another false lead. Another empty building. Another failure.

“Positive, sir. Cross referenced everything. Shell company name is Nightshade Holdings. Traced ownership through three dummy corporations. All lead back to Isabella’s offshore accounts.”

Noah also standing now. Hope dangerous but there. “What else?”

Evan pulled up satellite images. Thermal ones showing heat signatures inside building.

“Three people inside.” Evan pointed at screen. “Two moving around normally. One here in basement. Not moving much at all.”

Sienna had to be that one. Not moving. Tied up. Captive. Waiting.

Landon’s heart raced. This was it. Real lead. Real location. Real chance to save her.

“How recent is this data?”

“Twenty minutes old, sir. Live feed. She’s there right now.”

“Get everyone,” Landon ordered. Voice strong. Focused. Determined. “Every available man. We go now. No delays. No waiting. Now.”

Team assembled fast. Fifteen men this time. More than before. Better prepared than before. Learning from mistakes.

Landon stood before them in study, planning, explaining mission.

“Two teams,” he said, pointing at map of Cedar Lake area. “Road team approaches from front. Creates distraction. Draws attention.”

“Water team approaches from lake behind property. Infiltrates through hidden cellar entrance here.” Pointing at marked spot on blueprint of cabin.

“Thermal shows basement access from lake side. Old root cellar maybe. Connected to main structure.”

“I’m coming,” Noah said, standing from where he sat. “Water team. I’m coming.”

“No,” Landon said immediately. Automatic. “Too dangerous. You’re not trained for this.”

“She’s my family too,” Noah insisted. Stubborn. Determined. Not backing down. “Lora blames herself every day. I need to bring Sienna back for her. For everyone. For me.”

“Noah.”

“Please,” Noah said. Rare for him. Begging. But doing it anyway. “Let me help. Let me be there. Let me do something instead of just waiting.”

Landon looked at brother. Seeing desperation. Seeing need. Understanding it completely.

“Fine,” he said against better judgment. “But you stay behind me. You follow orders. You don’t take risks. Understood?”

“Understood,” Noah agreed. Grateful. Ready. Scared. But ready.

Two hours later. Cedar Lake. Night dark. Moon hidden behind clouds. Perfect for infiltration.

Landon and Noah crouched in woods fifty yards from cabin. Observing. Learning. Planning final approach.

Cabin looked fortified. Windows barred. Doors reinforced. Security cameras visible on corners. Isabella prepared for attack. Expected it maybe.

“She knows we’re coming,” Noah whispered. Stating obvious but needing to say it.

“Probably,” Landon agreed, also whispering. “But we’re coming anyway. No choice.”

Road team in position mile away. Waiting for signal. Ready to create chaos. Draw attention. Give water team opening.

Water team at lake edge. Boats ready. Quiet electric motors. No noise. No warning. Six men plus Landon and Noah. Best chance they had.

Landon gave signal. Hand raised. Then dropped. Go time.

Road team moved in loud, obvious. Cars screeching to stop front of cabin. Men shouting. Banging on door. Demanding entry.

Distraction working. Lights inside cabin moving toward front. Attention diverted exactly as planned.

Water team launched boats silent. Gliding across lake. Dark water reflecting nothing. Hiding everything.

Two minutes to shore behind cabin where trees thick. Where darkness complete. Where hope lived.

Landing quietly. Pulling boats onto bank. Securing them. Moving toward cellar entrance hidden beneath overgrown bushes exactly where intel said.

Door there. Old wooden one. Rusted hinges. But recently used. Dirt disturbed around it. Footprints fresh. Isabella using this entrance. Escape route maybe.

Marcus opened it slowly, carefully. Watching for traps. For explosives. For anything wrong.

Clear so far. Steps leading down into darkness. Into earth. Into unknown.

Landon went first. Weapon raised. Night vision goggles on. Seeing everything in green glow again.

Noah right behind. Also armed. Also ready. Heart pounding but steady.

Underground passage narrow. Low ceiling. Damp walls smelling like earth, like water, like age.

They moved forward slowly, systematically. Checking every corner. Every shadow. Every possibility.

Passage opening into larger space. Cellar under main cabin. Shelves with supplies. Canned food. Water. Blankets. Isabella prepared for long siege maybe.

But also something else. Wires everywhere. Running along walls, along ceiling. Connected to small boxes. Devices blinking red lights.

Explosives. Entire property rigged to blow.

Marcus examined one device carefully. Face grim. “C4. Professional grade. Enough here to level entire building.”

“Can you disarm?” Landon asked. Knowing answer already. Seeing complexity. Seeing timer. Seeing tripwires.

“Not without triggering it. She knew what she was doing. This is dead man’s switch system. We touch it. It blows.”

“Then we move fast,” Landon decided. No other option. “Find Sienna. Get out before Isabella decides to blow everything.”

They climbed stairs from cellar into main cabin. Quietly. Listening for movement. For voices. For anything.

Upstairs road team still at front door. Still making noise. Still providing distraction.

Landon and team moved through first floor. Kitchen empty. Living room empty. Everything empty. Wrong.

Then basement door. Different one from where they entered. This one leading to finished basement where thermal showed person not moving.

Down stairs. Weapons ready. Expecting Isabella. Expecting fight. Expecting everything.

But room empty too. Just chair. Metal one. Ropes on it. Cut. Frayed. Warm still.

She was here minutes ago. Just moved again. Always one step ahead. Always escaping.

“Damn it!” Landon shouted. Frustration. Rage. Despair all together.

Marcus found something. Security monitors. Bank of screens showing different angles of property.

And there on one screen. Isabella walking fast. Dragging Sienna beside her. Heading toward back of property. Toward lake. Toward boathouse.

“Boathouse,” Landon said. Understanding immediately. “She’s escaping by boat.”

On screen door opening behind room where chair was. Secret passage hidden in wall leading somewhere else.

“Tunnel,” Marcus said. Examining wall. Finding seam. Pushing panel. Sliding open. “Underground tunnel to boathouse probably.”

Landon ran into tunnel. No hesitation. No caution. Just need to get to Sienna. To stop Isabella. To end this.

Behind him explosion starting. Distant but growing closer. Isabella triggering devices. Destroying evidence. Destroying everything.

Tunnel shaking. Dust falling from ceiling. Walls cracking. Collapsing soon maybe.

They ran faster. All of them. Racing against time. Against explosions. Against Isabella escaping.

Tunnel ending at door. Wooden one. Light showing underneath. Sounds beyond it. Motor starting. Boat engine running.

Landon reached door first. Hand on handle. Noah beside him. Team behind ready to breach. To fight. To save Sienna finally.

Behind them another explosion. Louder. Closer. Tunnel starting to collapse. No going back. Only forward.

Landon looked at Noah. At brother. At partner in this. “Ready?”

“Ready,” Noah confirmed. Gripping weapon tight. Ready for whatever came next.

Landon kicked door open. Bursting into boathouse. Weapon raised. Shouting, “Isabella!”

And there she was. In boat. Motor running. Sienna beside her. Tied. Gagged. Terrified.

Isabella smiled seeing them. Gun in hand. Pointed at Sienna’s head.

“Too late, Landon,” she called over motor, over chaos, over everything. “Always too late.”

Boat starting to move. Pulling away from dock. Heading toward open water. Toward escape. Toward winning again.