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I feel as though Simon Vail is about to discover exactly who he threatened.
At eleven thirty, the decoy trunk leaves Hazel’s apartment.
We watch through a secure feed as officers carry it beneath a protective cover. A police escort follows the evidence vehicle toward the Coast Guard dock.
Kessler took the bait.
Keating received confirmation that Kessler asked his attorney to contact someone immediately after overhearing the transport information. The attorney made one call from a secure interview room.
The call lasted seventeen seconds.
It went to another prepaid phone.
That phone is now moving toward the waterfront.
“Simon knows,” Marquez says.
The decoy trunk is transferred aboard a Coast Guard patrol boat.
Two uniformed officers remain visible on deck. Four federal tactical agents hide inside the cabin.
At eleven fifty-three, a small fishing boat leaves a private marina.
It runs without navigation lights.
Marquez watches its progress.
“Two men aboard.”
“They aren’t heading for the patrol boat,” Keating says.
“No,” I agree. “They’re heading toward the ferry warehouse.”
The dark fishing boat approaches the abandoned dock.
A figure emerges from the warehouse and waves it closer.
The surveillance camera cannot show his face, but he carries a rifle.
Marquez touches her radio.
“Federal teams hold position. Let them transfer whoever is inside.”
The warehouse’s side door opens.
Two men drag someone onto the dock.
His hands are bound.
A dark hood covers his head.
“Elliot,” Ivy whispers.
Another prisoner follows.
He is taller and walks with a limp.
“That’s Peter,” she says. “I recognize his coat.”