A ONE-YEAR-OLD GIRL RAN SCREAMING AS HER STEPMOTHER CHASED HER WITH A BASEBALL BAT! Her mother arrived just seconds before disaster struck. But when the little girl opened her tiny fist, the USB inside made her father turn pale—and her stepmother tremble in terror!

Across the dark waters of the Hudson River, five miles away, a blinding flash of white light tore through the storm clouds.

A split-second later, a shockwave rattled the massive glass panes of Sterling Tower, vibrating through the soles of their feet. An enormous fireball mushroomed into the night sky, casting a sickening orange glow across the Manhattan skyline.

"The primary fuel depot at the harbor," Clara gasped, rushing to the window, shielding Lily’s eyes from the glare. "He wasn't targeting the reservoir. He lied about the countdown target to keep us in the city!"

"The harbor depot holds the backup data servers for the federal grand jury," Harrison realized in horror, spinning on Vance. "You just incinerated the state's entire digital vault!"

"No witnesses. No digital footprint," Vance whispered, laughing softly as the marshals tackled him to the floor, forcing his arms behind his back and snapping zip-ties onto his wrists. "You have no case without those mainframe backups, Harrison! The USB you hold is legally inadmissible without server verification! You’re ruined! The Syndicate will swallow you whole!"

"Drag him out," Harrison commanded, his voice cold and devoid of pity.

As the federal agents dragged the screaming old man out of the boardroom, the room fell into a heavy, suffocating silence. The remaining board members sat trembling, terrified to look Harrison in the eye.

Harrison turned to Clara. The adrenaline was wearing off, and the poison’s residual weakness made his knees buckle. Clara caught him by the arm, supporting his weight against her shoulder.

"You need a hospital, Harrison," Clara said softly, her anger completely replaced by urgent concern. "You’re bleeding through your bandages."

"No hospital," Harrison breathed, clutching her arm. "Arthur wasn't lying about the syndicate. The harbor attack was a distraction. They know Lily has the genetic sequence data in her metabolic profile. They’re coming for her directly now. We have to go off the grid."

"Where?" Clara asked, looking down at Lily, who was now awake, looking at the distant fire with wide, frightened eyes.

Harrison looked at Clara, his gaze dead serious. "The Iron Redoubt. My father’s private bunker in the Adirondacks. It has no digital signatures, no satellite uplink, and blast doors rated for war. But we have to make it out of Manhattan before dawn. Every bridge and tunnel will be a kill zone."

Lily reached out her tiny hand and touched Harrison’s pale cheek. "Dada no hurt?" she whispered.