Seb’s hand hovered near his weapon, his eyes calculating. “Get your lackeys to drop their weapons. This doesn’t have to end badly.”
Ortega’s laugh was cold, and completely devoid of humor. “Oh, but I think it does.”
In a swift, unexpected move, Ortega raised his gun, aiming directly at Clara. Time seemed to slow as adrenaline surged through her veins. But before he could pull the trigger, Seb acted. With lightning-fast reflexes, he drew his gun and shot Ortega in the shoulder. The shot echoed through the room, and Ortega staggered back, his weapon falling from his grasp.
Almost simultaneously, Carter, Max, Arlo, and Toby burst in through the open door behind Ortega’s guards, quickly overpowering the disoriented men before they could react to Seb’s shot.
“We’ve secured the rest of the mansion,” Carter announced. “All guards have been neutralized.”
Clara moved to her father, tears of relief in her eyes. “Dad, are you okay?” she asked, her voice thick with emotion.
Her father, still in shock, managed a weak nod. “I am now, thanks to you and your friends.”
As Clara deftly untied her father, Seb stepped forward, extending a respectful hand. “Pleased to meet you, Sir. I’m Clara’s mate. I wish we could have met under different circumstances.”
Clara’s father, still regaining his bearings, looked at Seb with a hint of surprise. “Wow, you’re big! What kind of shifter are you?” he asked, his voice steady despite the ordeal he had just endured.
“I’m a bear shifter, Sir,” Seb replied, a trace of pride in his voice.
A small smile crept onto her father’s face, his eyes softening as he glanced briefly at his daughter. “Good... strong and capable. I’m glad she has someone like you in her life.”
The moment was brief but filled with unspoken understanding and approval. Clara felt a surge of warmth at the exchange, her heart swelling with love for both men.
Turning their attention to the task at hand, the team quickly secured the area, ensuring Ortega and his guards were contained. They put a temporary dressing on Ortega’s shoulder, then Clara, her mind racing with the potential implications of their find, approached Ortega’s safe.
“I wonder…” she mused.
It had only been the day before when Clara had been in Ortega’s study to look at the painting. Would he have bothered to change the combination on the safe? She crossed to the matador painting and swung it open to reveal the safe behind. She punched in the numbers she had learned by heart and to her surprise, the safe clicked open.
Inside, she found the ledger that CN-6 had been seeking, along with a trove of other documents. Her hands trembledslightly as she leafed through the papers, each page revealing more of the shadowy network they were up against. There were detailed accounts of CN-6’s operations, lists of operatives, and intricate management structures.
“It’s all here,” Clara whispered, hardly believing the extent of what they had uncovered. “Years of CN-6’s secrets, right at our fingertips. I think this is enough to dismantle the entire organization.”
Seb leaned over her shoulder, looking at the evidence. He nodded. “This is it, Clara. This is the breakthrough we needed.”
The room filled with a sense of triumph and Clara felt a weight lift from her shoulders. They had achieved what had once seemed impossible.
As Clara and the team awaited the arrival of the Spanish Intelligence, the tension in the room shifted. Ortega, wounded and slumped against the wall, his shoulder bleeding through the makeshift dressing, was a shadow of the confident criminal mastermind he had been moments earlier. Yet, even in his weakened state, there was a gleam of defiance in his eyes.
Clara watched him warily, keeping a safe distance. Despite his injury, there was no underestimating a man like Ortega.
Breaking the silence, Ortega let out a pained laugh. “You think you’ve won, don’t you?” he rasped, his voice laced with bitterness. “But you don’t understand the full picture.”
Clara, her curiosity piqued despite her disdain for the man, asked, “And what full picture would that be?”
Ortega coughed, then continued, “CN-6... they’ve been a thorn in my side for years. Always trying to muscle in on my operations, my territory.”
Seb, standing nearby, interjected, “So, this was all a turf war to you?”
Ortega’s eyes narrowed. “More than that. It was survival. CN-6, they’re not just some low-level operatives. They’re as bigand as bad as they come. And they want what I have. I’ve been collecting intel on them for years, waiting for the right time to strike back.”
“And now what?” Clara asked, her voice steady. “You’re finished. We have everything we need to take you and CN-6 down.”
Ortega smirked, a hint of his former arrogance flickering in his expression. “Perhaps. But remember, in this world, there’s always someone else waiting to take my place. You’ve won a battle, not the war.”
The weight of his words hung in the air, a sobering reminder of the ongoing struggle against criminal enterprises like CN-6 and master criminals like Ortega. As Clara processed this revelation, she realized that their mission was part of a much larger fight, one that extended far beyond Ortega and his empire.
The team remained vigilant, keeping watch over Ortega and his men until the sound of approaching sirens signaled the arrival of the authorities. As they prepared to hand Ortega over and make their way out of the mansion, Clara knew that their victory was significant, but the journey was far from over.
