Chapter 9 - The Airstrip Takedown
The private Van Nuys airfield was practically deserted in the storm, save for a sleek, unmarked Gulfstream jet warming its engines on the tarmac.
We didn't call the local police. Preston owned them. Instead, I had Marcus patch me directly through to the FBI Director’s emergency line, uploading the Swiss medical files as proof of international medical trafficking.
We smashed the Land Rover through the chain-link perimeter fence, speeding straight onto the runway and skidding to a halt right in front of the jet’s nose, blocking its takeoff path.
The jet’s door lowered. Preston walked out onto the stairs, shielding his eyes from the rain, flanked by his armed security. He looked at us like we were insects.
“You really are a stubborn family,” Preston shouted over the roar of the engines, pulling a sleek handgun from his jacket. “Hand over the boy, Olivia. My mother is dying inside this plane.”
Olivia stepped out of the car. She didn't have a weapon, but she had something far more powerful: the absolute fearlessness of a mother.
“Your mother is already dead, Preston,” Olivia shouted back, standing tall in the pouring rain. “And so is your dynasty.”
Preston raised his gun, his face contorting into an ugly, desperate snarl. But before he could pull the trigger, the perimeter of the airfield exploded with blinding floodlights.
Six black FBI armored vehicles swarmed the tarmac from every direction, completely surrounding the jet. Snipers took positions on the hangars. A megaphone crackled through the storm.
“Preston Sterling! Drop your weapon! You are surrounded by federal agents!”
Preston froze, his arrogant facade finally cracking. He looked at the laser sights painting his chest. He looked back at his mother’s plane. And then, he looked at Olivia.
May you like
He dropped the gun to the wet tarmac and fell to his knees.
I stepped out of the car, standing beside my sister. We watched in silence as the FBI swarmed the stairs, slapping heavy iron cuffs on the billionaire who thought he could play God.
