The air outside the hospital tasted like exhaust fumes and freedom.
Aleigha stood on the curb, waiting. The adrenaline was fading, leaving her knees shaking. She felt lightheaded again.
A black Lincoln Town Car pulled up. It was Bart's secondary car.
The window rolled down. The driver, a man named Gary who had always looked at her with disdain, sneered.
"Boss says get in," Gary said. "He says stop making a scene and go back inside to apologize."
Aleigha looked at the car. It was a cage on wheels.
"Tell him to go to hell," she said softly.
Gary laughed. "You got no ride, lady. You got no money. Get in before I-"
A low rumble cut him off.
It started as a vibration in the pavement, growing into a deep, throaty roar that drowned out the city traffic.
Gary stopped talking. He looked in his rearview mirror, his eyes widening.
Around the corner, a phalanx of vehicles appeared.
Six customized Mercedes-Maybach S650s, jet black, with chrome grilles that gleamed like bared teeth. They moved in perfect formation, a predatory school of sharks gliding through the water.
They didn't slow down for the traffic. They simply took over the lane.
The lead car swerved, cutting off the Lincoln, forcing Gary to slam on his brakes and mount the curb. The other cars boxed him in, creating a protective semi-circle around Aleigha.
Passersby stopped. Phones came out. This was a motorcade fit for a head of state.
Clack-clack-clack.
The doors of all six cars opened simultaneously.
Twelve men stepped out. They wore identical black suits, earpieces, and sunglasses. They were not mall cops. They were military-grade security.
They moved with fluid precision, forming a perimeter. The crowd gasped.
The center car-the one with the flag holder on the fender-opened.
A man didn't step out. Instead, a gloved hand extended.
The head of the security detail, a giant of a man named Marcus, walked up to Aleigha. He ignored the Lincoln driver completely.
He bowed. A deep, respectful bow from the waist. He kept his movements formal, hiding the familial warmth he felt for the woman he had guarded since she was a child.
"Miss Aleigha," Marcus said, his voice booming enough for Gary to hear. "The Chairman is waiting. It's time to go home."
Miss Aleigha. Not Mrs. Brown.
Inside the Lincoln, Gary dropped his phone. His mouth hung open.
Aleigha noted that Marcus wore a plain black lapel pin, devoid of the Kemp family crest. Good. They were keeping it discreet.
Tears pricked her eyes again, but these were tears of relief.
She stepped forward. She didn't spare a glance at the Lincoln. She slid into the back seat of the Maybach.
The interior smelled of aged leather and sandalwood. It was quiet, hermetically sealed from the noise of New York.
A screen folded down from the ceiling. The face of an older man appeared. He had silver hair and eyes that matched Aleigha's.
Arman Kemp. The billionaire patriarch.
"Daddy," Aleigha whispered.
Arman's face softened. "You look thin, habibti. Did those bastards starve you?"
"I'm okay," she said, leaning back into the heated massage seat.
"We're going home," Arman said firmly. "And then, we burn them down."
Outside, Bart ran out of the hospital doors. He was just in time to see the tail lights of the convoy disappearing down the avenue.
He stared.
"What... who was that?" Bart asked, bewildered.
Gary, the driver, climbed out of the Lincoln, looking pale. "Boss... they picked her up. Like she was royalty. They called her 'Miss Aleigha'."
Bart frowned. He looked at the empty street.
"She rented them," Bart muttered, trying to convince himself. "She spent her last dime renting a fake motorcade to make me jealous. That's why there were no logos on the cars. Just generic high-end rentals. God, she's pathetic."
He pulled out his phone to call her, to laugh at her stunt.
"We're sorry, the number you have reached does not exist."
Bart froze. Not "disconnected." Not "busy." Does not exist. It was as if the digital identity of the phone had been wiped from the grid entirely.
He lowered the phone slowly. A shiver went down his spine. It felt like a ghost had just walked over his grave. He shook it off. "Cheap burner phone," he muttered. "She probably threw it in the trash."
