Chapter 28 - The Gathering StormTwo weeks later, the peaceful routine of the Eliana Vance Coastal Reserve was interrupted by the unmistakable bite of an early winter nor'easter howling off the Pacific.
Inside the library, the stone fireplace crackled with burning cedar, casting a warm, amber glow across the crowded reading tables where local children and families huddled out of the rain. Amy was helping the head librarian sort through a new delivery of historical archives when the heavy oak front doors swung open, letting in a gust of cold, wet wind.
Daniel walked in, shaking the rainwater from his heavy canvas jacket and unzipping his collar. He looked grim, holding a wet waterproof case containing a set of architectural blueprints and structural inspection logs.
Amy walked over to meet him, her brow furrowing at his expression. "Daniel? What’s wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost."
"I hope it's just a ghost, Amy," Daniel said, setting the waterproof case on the front desk and unbuckling the clasps. "We had municipal maintenance check the subterranean utility tunnels behind the reserve this morning following the storm surge."
Liam walked over from the children's section, wiping his hands on a shop rag. "What did they find, Daniel?"
Daniel pulled out a set of structural blueprints overlaid with thermal imaging scans. He pointed a finger at a critical section beneath the library’s foundation slab.
"They didn't just find a maintenance issue," Daniel said, his voice dropping to a grave whisper. "Someone tampered with the foundational drainage culverts during the storm last week. The main support pillars are sitting directly over a hollowed-out subterranean cavity filled with high-explosive detonator wire."
Amy’s blood ran cold. She gripped the edge of the counter. "Explosive wire? Who would—"
"Not Arthur Sterling," Daniel interrupted grimly, looking up to meet Liam and Amy’s horrified eyes. "Julian Vance had an older brother. A black-ops demolitions expert who disappeared off the grid twenty years ago. And according to the encrypted comms logs we intercepted from Zurich before the servers were wiped..."
May you like
Daniel paused, swallowing hard.
"...he's already here in Oregon."
