January 25 2020
HOSPITAL ROOM, EARLY MORNING
Luke sat on the edge of the hospital bed, stiff shoulder wrapped in gauze, stitches running just beneath his hairline. His discharge papers sat untouched on the side table.
Through the window, he could just barely see the floor AJ was resting on. He'd been watching it all night.
He knew what the reports said:
Reporter - Driver lost control. Slick road. Poor visibility.
But Luke had seen the headlights. The angle. The intent.
This wasn't a weather accident.
This was a message.
---
CRASH SITE – LATE AFTERNOON
Luke leaned against the taped-off edge of the road. The SUV had already been towed, the ground hosed clean.
But he saw things others missed
Glass patterns. Tire marks. Oil traces that didn't match their vehicle.
His eyes narrowed.
Luke- Two cars. Theirs... and someone else trailing.
He crouched beside a splintered tree trunk. Something caught his eye—half-covered in mud.
Tire spike. Custom rigged.
Luke picked it up slowly.
Luke - They forced the blowout.
Someone had set them up.
And whoever it was, they weren't done.
---
NIGHT, SAFE HOUSE — 8:17 PM
Luke opened the steel door with his key, glancing over his shoulder three times before entering. Inside, quiet. Sterile.
He locked the door and made his way to the back room — the secure equipment bunker Dave had built under an alias.
He popped open his laptop, inserted the spike into a portable forensic scanner.
The data confirmed what he suspected:
> Military-grade. Modified. No fingerprints. But a symbol etched into the rim — one Luke had seen before.
The insignia was faded, but unmistakable.
Luke - Ron's brother... or someone he owed.
Luke's pulse quickened.
If they came once... they'd come again.
---
HOSPITAL, AJ'S ROOM — NIGHT
Luke walked in silently. AJ was awake now, resting with Mateo asleep on her chest. Dave was half-dozing beside them.
AJ glanced over.
AJ - You're supposed to be in recovery
she said softly.
Luke stood in the shadows, arms crossed.
Luke- I found a spike, Custom rigged. Someone forced the tire to blow.
He said
AJ's body tensed.
AJ - So it wasn't just bad luck.
Luke- No.
Luke looked between them.
Luke - This wasn't about random vengeance. They're targeting you... and him.
He nodded at Mateo.Dave stood now, fully awake.
Luke - You going on full lockdown. I'll get extra detail on the house, the daycare, the hospital.
Luke nodded once. But then his voice softened.
Luke - You should know... they're not trying to scare you. They're trying to finish something.
AJ's fingers instinctively curled protectively over Mateo.
