In a Brooklyn warehouse district, a drone circled a five-story concrete warehouse before landing in an open area surrounded by shipping containers. By the time Jack and Aubrey arrived near the target location, NYPD officers had discreetly sealed off the surrounding streets. After checking their credentials, the two were allowed through.
The FBI-SWAT team had deployed nearly its entire unit to encircle the 2,000-square-meter warehouse. Sniper teams, working in pairs, had secured elevated positions at various vantage points.
The terrain around the warehouse was complex, littered with stacked shipping containers. While these provided plenty of cover for officers, they also created significant blind spots for the snipers. As dusk approached, the warehouse's dusty glass windows further hindered visibility.
A temporary command center had been set up on the third floor of a nearby building, approximately 150 meters from the warehouse. It offered a clear view of the rear parking lot, where the gray BMW with missing plates was parked.
After handing over Octavio's wife to two colleagues for supervision, Jack and Aubrey entered the command center and found Jubal peering through binoculars at the parking lot.
"Got kicked out of your office by your boss again?" Jack teased with a grin.
Jubal sighed and shrugged. "You bet. Dana's taken over operations at the command center. She's concerned Octavio won't surrender easily and wanted me to handle on-site negotiations."
Dana Morge, the assistant director, had been largely absent earlier in the case, as it had started as a straightforward kidnapping. But now it had escalated into a hostage situation involving a suspect with military training. With SWAT fully deployed, Dana needed to be on hand to make critical decisions, including whether to authorize lethal force.
Jack adjusted his earpiece to sync with the shared command channel and glanced around the room, noticing Hannah was missing.
"She's at the forward command post," Jubal explained, pointing southward. "It's on the roof of a three-story building directly facing the warehouse. The view's better there, but space is limited. She took your gear there—it's your job to take over command."
"Got it. I'm heading over now."
As Jack prepared to leave, he motioned for Aubrey to follow. Before they could move, a SWAT commander approached Jubal and reported, "We've evacuated all nearby buildings. Six sniper teams are in position. Using infrared cameras on the drone, we've confirmed four heat signatures inside the warehouse."
Jubal nodded. "That matches our intel. We can assume they're Octavio, his son, and the two doctors. Deploy fiber-optic cameras through the ventilation ducts—we need visuals inside.
Nightfall puts us at a disadvantage, especially for the snipers. Alert all units to hold their positions and avoid provoking the suspect. He likely doesn't know we're here yet—let's use that to our advantage."
The SWAT commander acknowledged the order and left to coordinate the deployment. Jack decided to stay and wait until the fiber-optic cameras were operational.
The warehouse's sheer size and the suspect's solitary presence worked in the FBI's favor, giving them time to carefully execute their plan. Under SWAT cover, the tech team inserted fiber-optic cameras through ventilation shafts on either side of the building.
Soon, live footage from inside the warehouse appeared on the command center's monitors. In the west corner, piles of construction materials and wooden boards occupied a large area. At the center was an improvised surgical room, constructed from aluminum frames, double-layered panels, and large glass panes. The makeshift operating room spanned 40-50 square meters.
One of the cameras had an ideal angle, showing a clear view of the surgical room from above. While the resolution wasn't perfect, it was sufficient to discern the situation.
The surgical room was equipped with tools and machines comparable to those in a legitimate hospital: oxygen tanks, surgical tables, shadowless lamps, ventilators, and life-monitoring devices. It was evident that Lucas Caldwell and Terrence Nelson had heavily invested in their illegal operations.
Inside, the surgery was already underway. The boy, Tony Diaz, appeared to have just been anesthetized. Dr. Lucas Caldwell was making the initial incision, while the kidnapped anesthesiologist, Dr. Nicole Wright, assisted him. Both were focused on their work.
The scene looked disturbingly normal, like a routine surgery in any hospital. The only anomaly was the man pacing nervously at the operating room door, holding an automatic weapon.
"Jack, can you lead a strike team for a tactical assault?" Jubal asked after watching the footage. While he doubted it was feasible, he felt compelled to explore the option given Jack's reputation.
Jack shook his head firmly. "I'm not a miracle worker. For an unofficial op, sure, I could sneak in and take him out with one shot.
But this is a fully coordinated operation with over a hundred personnel on-site. Any aggressive plan would need higher approval, and even if it succeeded, I'd likely be reprimanded afterward."
Pointing to the screen, Jack explained, "That's an AR-15 with a 30-round magazine, not some junk with a bump stock. The warehouse is huge, and the closest entrance is at least ten meters from the surgical room.
Octavio is an experienced soldier who's fought drug cartels—if anyone breaches, a firefight is almost guaranteed. Under these conditions, ensuring the hostages' safety is nearly impossible."
Jack paused before adding, "And forget about flashbangs. The boy's abdominal cavity is about to be opened. A flashbang's impact would likely kill him."
Jubal sighed. "Negotiation seems like the best course of action for now. I'll update the command center. Head to the forward post—live visuals have been synced there."
As Jubal began a call with Dana, Jack and Aubrey left the building and made their way to the forward post. But as they approached, Jack noticed something troubling: several SWAT team members had exposed their positions.
While the snipers' locations were well-concealed, some assault team members had recklessly propped their rifles on the rooftop's parapet, openly aiming at the warehouse's large front windows. If Octavio stepped a few feet from the operating room and glanced outside, the entire operation would be compromised.
Jack frowned, unsure whether this lapse was due to poor communication or a misunderstanding of Jubal's instructions. He was about to use the command channel to issue a reminder when Hannah's tense voice came through his earpiece.
"We see movement at the window—Octavio is looking outside!"
"Damn it! What's he doing?" Jubal's alarmed voice followed immediately.
Before anyone could respond, a sharp sound of shattering glass cut through the air, followed by gunfire.
Jack instinctively grabbed Aubrey and pulled him behind a shipping container as chaos erupted. SWAT teams returned fire, and the warehouse's large glass windows shattered under the barrage.
"Cease fire! Cease fire!" Jubal's furious voice roared over the channel.
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