Page 106 of Shadowed Vows: Ghost
"Camera feed just glitched," Cole's voice sharpens. "Someone's tampering with surveillance."
I push the bike faster, running a red light and nearly clipping a taxi. "Status?"
Silence for three excruciating seconds.
"Feed's back," Jax finally says. "Fuck—they're carrying her toward the back door. She appears unconscious."
The world narrows to a single point of focus. "Description of vehicle?"
"Black panel van, no plates visible. Just pulled up in front of the café."
"I see it," I snarl, spotting the van two blocks ahead. "In pursuit."
I weave through traffic, losing some ground when I have to slow down for a car that pulls out in front of me. Close enough now to see two men loading Alina's limp body into the back of the vehicle. White-hot rage floods my system as I accelerate.
The van door slams shut. It peels away from the curb with surprising speed.
"Target moving north on Columbus, approaching Bay," Asher reports from headquarters.
"I'm on them," I confirm, pushing the motorcycle to its limits.
The van takes a sharp right, cutting off a delivery truck that skids sideways, blocking my path. I swerve onto thesidewalk, narrowly avoiding a newspaper stand before rejoining the road.
"They're heading north on Van Ness," Cole updates. "Looks like they're taking the route toward Golden Gate Bridge."
The van weaves through traffic with practiced precision, making seemingly random turns. Whoever's driving knows what they're doing.
"They just cut through Levi Plaza," Jax calls out. "Wait—lost visual. Someone's systematically killing the feeds."
I spot the van again, but it disappears into an underground parking structure. I follow, descending into the concrete space.
Empty. Completely fucking empty.
"They're not here," I growl, circling the structure. "Must be another exit."
"Checking building schematics," Cole responds immediately. "There's a service tunnel that connects to the next building over."
I race toward the exit he indicates, but find it blocked by a delivery truck—deliberately positioned.
"They planned this," I mutter, doubling back. "Cole, I need all available cameras in a six-block radius."
By the time I emerge onto the street, the van is gone.
"Lost them," I admit, the words burning in my throat. "Everyone converge on command center. Now."
Twenty minutes later, we're all gathered around the massive display wall at headquarters. Cole frantically works multiple screens, searching for any trace of the van.
"They knew exactly how to disappear," Remy observes, studying traffic patterns. "But they can't erase their digital footprint completely."
"The glitches in the cameras weren't random," Cole adds. "Someone hacked the entire network, creating selective blind spots."
"This was professional," Xander says, examining the pattern. "Military-grade tactics."
Jax enters, tossing his jacket aside. "X7's prepped and waiting. Full tactical loadout."
I nod sharply. "Good. Once we have a location—"
"Wait," Asher interrupts, leaning closer to his screen. "What about Simon?"
