Chapter 12 - The Macau Syndicate.The war room was a chaotic blur of naval intelligence officers, federal agents, and tactical analysts scrambling to track a ghost.
I stared at the glowing digital map of the globe, watching the red trajectory lines extending outward from the United States.
“The syndicate he’s working with is known as the Crimson Lotus, a highly sophisticated criminal enterprise operating out of Macau,” Major Sterling explained, pointing a laser at the map.
“They control deep-water ports, private defense contracts, and an underground tech-trafficking ring that supplies warlords across the globe.”
“Arthur isn't a prisoner to them; he’s the guest of honor, carrying the rest of the naval schematics in his eidetic memory,” I added.
“If he helps them reverse-engineer the acoustic cloaking technology of our submarine fleet, our entire Pacific defense grid is rendered obsolete,” Admiral Reed warned grimly.
The stakes were no longer about a family feud or settling a personal score over a sabotaged ship.
Millions of lives were on the line, and standard extradition treaties were completely useless against an organization that owned the local government.
“We can’t send in a SEAL team; an unsanctioned military strike on foreign soil would trigger an international incident,” Sterling cautioned.
“Which is exactly why you aren't going to send a military team,” I countered, stepping into the center of the room.
“I am currently on indefinite administrative leave pending the results of the internal investigation regarding the Vance Global scandal.”
“As far as the international community is concerned, I am just a disgruntled civilian with a violent vendetta against her father.”
Admiral Reed looked at me, a mixture of profound respect and deep concern crossing his weathered features.
“If you go in there off the books and get caught, the United States will disavow any knowledge of your existence,” he said softly.
“I’m fully aware of the protocol, Admiral,” I replied, unbuttoning the collar of my dress uniform to reveal the scars beneath.
“I died in the South China Sea once already; I have absolutely nothing left to lose.”
“You aren't going alone,” Sterling interjected, closing his laptop and standing up to join me.
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“I was a Force Recon Marine before I became a lawyer, and I’m taking some accumulated vacation time.”
We were a two-person team going up against a heavily entrenched criminal empire, armed with nothing but burner passports and a burning desire for retribution.
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