Chapter 19 The Sea Pursuit
The small speedboat roared to life as Elena turned the key. Waves splashed against the hull, and the engine’s hum broke the quiet of the dock. Luca jumped in beside her, loading his gun, while Anna scrambled to untie the rope.
“Hold on!” Elena shouted as she slammed the throttle forward.
The boat shot out from the dock like a bullet, bouncing over the waves. The wind whipped through her hair, and salt stung her lips. Ahead, the luxury yacht glided smoothly toward the open sea — white, massive, and fast.
Luca leaned over the side, watching the distance close. “He’s not slowing down. That yacht’s twice our size!”
Elena gritted her teeth. “Then we’ll have to get close enough to make him.”
Anna clung to the railing, shouting over the roar. “Do you even know how to drive this thing?”
“Not really!” Elena yelled back, twisting the wheel hard as the boat cut through a wave. “But I’m learning fast!”
Gunfire cracked from the yacht’s deck. Water splashed near the boat as bullets tore through the waves.
Luca ducked. “They’re shooting at us!”
“No kidding!” Elena replied.
He aimed his gun, firing back. The echo of gunshots carried across the sea, lost in the sound of crashing water. One of the guards on the yacht fell. The others took cover.
Anna crouched beside the seat, pulling out her camera. “We need proof of this — if we die, at least someone will know what happened!”
“Don’t say that!” Elena snapped, turning sharply to avoid another wave. “We’re not dying today!”
The yacht began to turn, trying to block them. Lorenz stood at the railing, calm and steady even in chaos. He shouted orders to his men, then looked straight at Elena, smiling.
“He’s mocking us,” Luca muttered.
“Good,” Elena said, her voice like steel. “Let’s wipe that smile off his face.”
She pushed the throttle all the way forward. The boat’s engine screamed as they closed the gap. The waves grew higher, the sea rougher. Every bump shook the boat, but Elena held firm.
“Get ready!” she yelled.
Luca blinked. “For what?”
Elena’s eyes locked on the yacht’s rear deck. “To jump!”
Before either of them could argue, she aimed the boat toward the yacht’s stern and leaped. The impact was brutal. The speedboat crashed against the side of the yacht, scraping metal and spraying water. Elena grabbed the railing and pulled herself up, breathless.
“Come on!” she shouted.
Luca followed, pulling Anna with him. They climbed onto the deck as guards rushed out from the cabin.
The first one swung at Elena with a metal rod. She ducked and punched him in the throat. Another came from behind, but Luca tackled him down. Anna, trembling, grabbed a wrench and hit the third guard over the head.
“Nice!” Luca shouted.
“I hate violence!” Anna shouted back, shaking.
Elena looked toward the bridge. “Lorenz!” she called. “It’s over!”
He appeared in the doorway, holding a pistol and that same calm smile. “You really are your father’s daughter.”
Elena raised her gun. “And you’re the reason he’s dead.”
He tilted his head. “No, Elena. Your father destroyed himself. He tried to betray Rafael. I only cleaned up the mess.”
“By killing innocent people?”
He sighed. “There’s no such thing as innocence in this family.”
He fired. The bullet whizzed past Elena’s ear, hitting the metal wall. She dropped low and fired back. The shot hit his arm, making him drop his gun.
Luca ran forward, kicking the weapon away. He pressed Lorenz against the wall, holding him at gunpoint. “You’re done!”
Lorenz laughed softly, blood dripping from his sleeve. “You think this ends with me? Rafael has already moved the next shipment. You’re too late.”
Elena stepped closer, eyes burning. “Where is he?”
Lorenz smirked. “Ask him yourself.”
He reached into his jacket and pulled out a small black device — a satellite phone. Before Luca could stop him, he pressed a button.
The screen lit up. A man’s face appeared — older, with silver hair and sharp eyes. Rafael Cruz.
Elena froze.
“Hello, niece,” he said in a calm, deep voice. “You look just like your mother.”
Elena’s hands trembled. “You’re alive.”
“Very much so,” Rafael said. “And I see you’ve been busy.”
“You’re behind everything,” she said. “The drugs, the weapons, the trafficking — all of it.”
Rafael smiled. “You make it sound so cruel. I call it business. Your father tried to take it from me, so I took it back. That’s how family works.”
“You murdered your own brother!” she shouted.
Rafael’s smile faded. “He betrayed the blood. Just like you’re doing now.”
“I’m not like you!”
“Oh, but you are,” Rafael said softly. “You carry my blood, my legacy. You can destroy me, but you’ll never escape what you are.”
The call ended.
Lorenz chuckled weakly. “Now you know the truth.”
Elena stared at him, fury building in her chest. “You’re going to tell me where he is.”
He smirked. “And if I don’t?”
Elena stepped closer, pressing the gun to his shoulder. “Then you’ll wish I’d left you to the sea.”
Lorenz hesitated, then spoke. “He’s not in Europe anymore. He’s moved the operations to Morocco. Casablanca port. That’s where the next shipment will go.”
Luca nodded. “We’ll find him.”
Lorenz laughed again. “You’ll try. But you won’t make it far. Rafael always knows who’s coming.”
Elena hit him hard, knocking him unconscious. She breathed heavily, looking out at the endless blue horizon. The sea was calm again, but inside her, a storm was raging.
Anna came beside her, wiping sweat from her forehead. “So now what?”
Elena looked toward the south, where the sun touched the water. “Now we go to Morocco.”
Luca frowned. “That’s dangerous territory. You’ll be walking right into his home.”
Elena nodded. “Good. That’s exactly where I want to be.”
She looked down at Lorenz’s phone and picked it up. On the screen was a new message that had arrived minutes ago:
> ‘Casablanca — 72 hours. Phase Two begins.’
Elena’s heart hardened. “Then we have three days to end this.”
The yacht floated silently as they turned it toward the coast. Behind them, the speedboat sank slowly into the waves. Ahead, a new storm was waiting — across the sea, in Morocco, where the empire began and where it would finally fall.