Chapter 250
Chapter 250:
She lowered the binoculars, her eyes burning with cold, absolute logic. “If you breach that building, they will trigger an incendiary protocol. They’ll burn the counterfeit drugs and the ledgers within seconds. We lose all the evidence, and the patients waiting for real medicine will die p>
She turned and leaned her back against the cold metal of the SUV, her mind working at a terrifying speed, calculating variables and probabilities. Then her dark eyes flashed with a sudden, dangerous light.
She looked directly at Crawford. “Can you still establish a secure connection with Mrs. Miller in Brooklyn p>
Crawford blinked, caught off guard by the pivot. Then a slow, predatory smile spread across his face as the shape of her plan came into focus.
“We can’t get inside,” June said, her voice vibrating with quiet authority. “So we are going to make them bring the evidence directly to us p>
She tapped her finger against the hood of the car.
𝖣оn’𝗍 m𝘪𝘴𝗌 n𝖾𝘄 𝘳e𝗹𝖾𝖺sеѕ 𝘰𝗇 ѕ.сo𝗆
“We use Mrs. Miller to place a large emergency order on the Dark Web,” she said. “We offer triple the market price. We force the logistics manager to arrange a physical dead drop somewhere in the city tonight p>
Brogan’s eyes went wide. “A bait-and-switch. That’s brilliant p>
“Let’s get back to the hotel,” June said, pulling her coat tight against the wind. “We have a trap to set p>
Inside the sprawling Presidential Suite of a Back Bay Boston hotel, the heavy blackout curtains were drawn tight. The only light in the massive living room came from the glow of three encrypted laptops arranged across the mahogany dining table.
June sat in the center chair, fingers moving rapidly across the keyboard, lines of green code reflecting in her dark eyes. Crawford stood directly behind her wearing a voice-modulation headset, speaking through a heavily encrypted proxy server to Mrs. Miller back in New York.
Following June’s exact script, Mrs. Miller logged into a hidden Dark Web medical forum and posted a high-priority request. She claimed to represent a wealthy overseas buyer who needed ten full cycles of the counterfeit Apex Bio drug immediately, offering an astronomical sum for a face-to-face transaction in Boston that night.
The suite was dead silent. The tension was thick enough to cut.
Thirty agonizing minutes passed.
A private chat window appeared on the screen. The sender’s ID was a string of randomized alphanumeric characters. The dealer demanded proof of funds.
June gave a sharp nod. Crawford immediately transmitted a flawlessly forged offshore bank statement showing ten million dollars in liquid assets.
The bait was taken.
The dealer sent a single encrypted coordinate: an abandoned subway ventilation shaft on the Red Line.
June’s eyes narrowed. She pulled up the Boston municipal map and locked onto the location. Crawford grabbed his radio and ordered his private tactical team and the detective to move to the site immediately and establish an invisible perimeter.
Two hours later, a freezing winter rain began to pour across Boston.
The tactical feed crackled in Crawford’s earpiece. The detective’s voice was taut. The drop zone is completely empty. No movement.
June stared at the GPS tracker on her screen. A cold, sickening knot formed in her stomach. Her instincts screamed that something was wrong.