**PART 4 — DEREK’S LAST LEVERAGE**
Detective Shaw moved faster than I had seen anyone move that night.
“Name.”
“Rebecca Mercer.”
“Address.”
Evan gave it.
Shaw relayed the information instantly.
Patrol units were sent.
Cole stepped toward him.
“How far?”
“Fifteen minutes.”
“At this hour?”
“Maybe twelve.”
Cole looked at me.
“You stay here.”
I almost laughed.
“No.”
“Sarah.”
“I just found out the man who choked me unconscious might have been part of an insurance cr1me operation and has disappeared after apparently going after a witness’s sister.”
“That is exactly why you stay here.”
My anger flared.
“You spent your entire life telling me not to freeze when I’m scared.”
“I told you to make smart decisions while scared.”
“And hiding inside this gym is smart?”
“Yes.”
He said it so calmly that I wanted to throw something at him.
Then he softened.
“For tonight, yes.”
I looked at his face.
The brother beneath the SEAL.
The boy who had once walked me home from school when I was twelve because three girls had decided humiliating me was funny.
The man who never made promises casually.
“I’ll be back.”
I hated those words.
Because people said them when they couldn’t guarantee anything.
Cole seemed to read my expression.
“Sarah.”
“What?”
“You called me because you needed help moving.”
Despite everything, I almost smiled.
“You showed up ten minutes early.”
“Worst timing of my life.”
“Best timing of mine.”
His expression changed.
Then he hugged me.
Quickly.
Tightly.
“I’m coming back.”
Shaw interrupted.
“Cole.”
My brother released me.
The detective gestured toward the door.
“I may regret this, but you’re riding with me.”
Officer Ramirez raised an eyebrow.
Shaw shrugged.
“He understands nervous people better than most officers I know.”
Cole nodded.
They left.
For forty minutes, the gym became unbearable.
Statements.
Questions.
Paramedics checked my throat and recommended additional medical evaluation.
I refused to leave until I knew Rebecca was safe.
Maria stayed beside me.
So did Tyler.
Aaron paced.
Martin sat handcuffed near the office.
Then his phone began ringing.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Officer Ramirez glanced at the screen.
“Unknown number.”
Martin’s entire body stiffened.
Ramirez looked at him.
“Derek?”
Martin said nothing.
The phone rang again.
Shaw had left instructions.
Answer on speaker.
Ramirez accepted.
Nobody breathed.
Derek’s voice filled the room.
“Martin?”
Martin looked around.
Ramirez nodded.
“Yeah.”
“You let them downstairs?”
Martin shut his eyes.
“You left me.”
Derek laughed softly.
“You were supposed to delete it.”
“I tried.”
“Not hard enough.”
Martin’s voice cracked.
“Where are you?”
“That doesn’t matter.”
Then Derek said something that made everyone look at me.
“Is Sarah still there?”
My skin went cold.
Martin stared at me.
Ramirez shook his head firmly.
Martin lied.
“No.”
Silence.
Derek laughed again.
“You always were terrible at this.”
The call disconnected.
Tyler whispered, “How would he know?”
Nobody answered.
Then Maria looked toward the cameras.
“He can see us.”
Every head turned upward.
The security cameras.
Martin’s face collapsed.
“He has remote access.”
Ramirez immediately ordered everyone out of camera view.
Technicians disconnected the gym network.
But the damage was done.
Derek knew I was there.
My phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
One text.
YOU SHOULD HAVE TAPPED EARLIER.
I stared at it.
Maria gasped.
Ramirez took my phone.
Another message arrived.
YOUR BROTHER CAN’T PROTECT EVERYONE.
Then a photograph.
Cole and Detective Shaw’s vehicle.
Taken from behind.
On the road.
They were being followed.
Ramirez radioed them immediately.
No answer.
Again.
Nothing.
My chest tightened.
Then Shaw responded.
“We see him.”
Ramirez leaned toward his radio.
“Do not engage alone.”
Shaw replied.
“He’s not behind us.”
Ramirez frowned.
“Then who took the picture?”
Silence.
Three seconds.
Five.
Then Cole’s voice came through.
“It was taken from the gym parking lot twenty minutes ago.”
I understood.
Derek wasn’t following Cole.
He was still near us.
Ramirez understood too.
He turned toward the rear exit.
The door was open.
It hadn’t been open before.
Everyone froze.
Then the lights went out.
Someone screamed.
Emergency lighting flickered red.
I heard feet moving.
Ramirez shouted, “Stay together!”
Maria grabbed me.
A dark figure appeared near the lockers.
Tyler shouted.
The figure ran.
Officer Ramirez pursued.
I saw only flashes.
Gray walls.
Red emergency lights.
Bare feet.
A shoulder.
Then the rear door slammed.
Ramirez returned moments later.
“Lost him.”
Martin was staring at the floor.
“He knows the building better than anyone.”
“Derek?”
Martin shook his head.
“No.”
My stomach dropped.
“What do you mean no?”
“That wasn’t Derek.”
The room went still.
Martin looked at Detective Chen.
“There are two of them.”
Chen stepped closer.
“Two what?”
Martin whispered:
“Derek wasn’t running this.”
Every assumption shattered.
“Who was?” I asked.
Martin looked toward the whiteboard downstairs.
“You saw the attorney names?”
Shaw’s voice came over the radio again.
“Rebecca is safe. No one at her house.”
Relief lasted perhaps two seconds.
Then Martin said:
“Check the third name from the bottom.”
Officer Chen ran downstairs.
Minutes later he returned holding a photographed copy of the whiteboard.
He enlarged a name.
VINCENT KANE.
Maria frowned.
“Kane?”
I stared at Martin.
“Derek’s family?”
“Older brother.”
“What does he do?”
Martin whispered:
“He’s a personal-i/njury attorney.”
Suddenly the structure became horrifyingly clear.
Derek created the i/njuries.
Martin provided the location.
Vincent provided the legal machine.
Clinics inflated bills.
Claims became settlements.
Settlements became profit.
And anyone who noticed too much became a problem.
Shaw heard everything over the radio.
“Find Vincent.”
Chen searched databases.
His face changed.
“He’s not at home.”
“Office?”
“Closed.”
“Phone?”
“Off.”
Then Evan, now inside the ambulance outside, asked for Shaw.
His voice came over speakerphone.
“There’s something else.”
Shaw answered.
“What?”
Evan said, “Vincent wasn’t just using real i/njuries.”
“What do you mean?”
“He staged lawsuits against businesses.”
Nobody spoke.
“He paid people to claim accidents. Gyms. Grocery stores. Parking garages. Construction sites. Wherever insurers would settle.”
Shaw asked, “How big?”
Evan gave a weak laugh.
“Millions.”
Martin lowered his head.
Then I remembered something.
The board.
My name.
FAMILY CONNECTION UNKNOWN.
“Why did they write that next to me?”
Martin looked at me.
He didn’t want to answer.
“Martin.”
He swallowed.
“Because Derek was researching people before choosing them.”
“Why?”
“Assets. Family. Insurance. Whether they would fight.”
Cole’s voice came through the radio.
“Say that again.”
Martin flinched.
“He looked for people unlikely to cause trouble.”
My face burned.
“So he chose me because he thought I was weak?”
Martin looked away.
“Yes.”
The word hurt more than I expected.
Cole replied before I could.
“He made a bad calculation.”
Then Evan interrupted.
“Sarah wasn’t chosen for that.”
Everyone stared at the ambulance speaker.
“What?”
Evan repeated himself.
“She wasn’t chosen because she was weak.”
“How would you know?”
“Because her file is newer than the others.”
I didn’t understand.
Evan continued.
“After I found the operation, they changed tactics. They started selecting people connected to high-value targets.”
Cole went silent.
My stomach tightened.
“What high-value target?”
Evan said:
“Your brother.”
—
