Chapter 11 - The Smear Campaign
The rain whipped through the trees as Daniel fought for control of the suppressed pistol. The intruder was fast, agile, and clearly professionally trained - a mercenary, not a petty thief. He drove an elbow hard into Daniel's bruised ribs, sending a sharp spike of agony through his chest.
Daniel gasped, but his grip on the man's wrist remained an iron vise. Utilizing his hand-to-hand combat training, Daniel twisted the intruder's wrist outward while driving the heel of his palm directly into the man's forearm. The bone popped loudly, and the suppressed pistol flew into the wet grass.
The intruder let out a muffled grunt of pain, disengaged, and rolled backward into the dense brush. Before Daniel could regain his footing, the man scrambled over the six-foot stone wall surrounding the estate and disappeared into a waiting getaway car that sped off into the night.
Daniel retrieved the dropped weapon from the mud using his flashlight beam. It was a customized Glock 19 with its serial numbers filed off - a signature assassin's weapon.
Ten minutes later, Detective Vance arrived with two patrol units. They stood in the estate garage while Vance bagged the pistol in an evidence pouch.
"He was cutting the security feeds so a strike team could enter unnoticed," Daniel explained, holding an ice pack against his bruised ribs. "Julian isn't waiting for the shareholders' vote anymore. He knows Laura won't back down, so he's accelerating the timeline."
"This gun is untraceable," Vance sighed, handing the evidence bag to a forensic officer. "Julian is keeping his hands completely clean. Without a direct link connecting him to these mercenaries, I can't get a judge to sign an arrest warrant."
Laura walked into the garage, wrapped in a dark sweater, her face pale. "Then we give him the confrontation he wants."
Daniel and Vance turned to look at her.
"What do you mean?" Laura asked.
"The annual Bennett Logistics Shareholders Gala is tomorrow night at the Grand Harbor Hotel," Laura said, her eyes flashing with dangerous determination. "Julian has invited every major investor, media outlet, and board member. He plans to publicly announce his motion to strip my voting proxies due to 'family instability.'"
She looked straight at Daniel. "I want you there with me, Daniel. Not as security in the background. As my guest."
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"Laura," Vance warned, "that's stepping straight into the lion's den. Julian controls the venue security."
"Let him," Daniel said, a slow, cold smile spreading across his face. "In the military, when you're being ambushed from an unseen position, you don't hide in the grass. You turn toward the fire and assault the position. Tomorrow night, we bring the fight to Julian.
