Chapter 12: The Last Transmission

The sedan’s engine settled into idle once more as Dracona shifted into park beside the same dock shed where Marcus had stood earlier. She kept her hands on the wheel. The burner phone vibrated against Harry’s knee.

Marcus’s message appeared in the same coded format they had used all afternoon. Both fathers confirmed at the meeting site within the hour. Coordinates followed on the next line. Harry read the message aloud, his voice steady against the idling engine.

“The warehouse two blocks from the eastern pier,” he said. “Neutral ground. Marcus set the time thirty minutes from now.”

Dracona studied the numbers. The location sat halfway between the Malfoy and Potter territories, which meant neither side held the advantage. She tapped the address into the glovebox map. The remaining audio files sat in a single encrypted folder on Harry’s second device. Marcus had relayed the plan through the burner less than twenty minutes earlier. They would use those files to force both fathers into signing a ceasefire document under the threat of immediate exposure.

She turned the key off. The engine died. Neither of them moved for several seconds.

Harry scrolled through the message history. “Marcus says Lucius arrived with three men. Your father has the document ready for signature. James Potter will bring his own copy.”

Dracona opened her door. “Let’s move.”

Harry circled the sedan and met her at the trunk. They removed the remaining pistols Marcus had supplied during the previous meeting. Neither weapon carried markings that traced back to either family. Dracona checked the magazine in hers. Harry did the same without speaking. They left the sedan unlocked and walked toward the warehouse through the side access road.

The building sat behind a row of disused freight containers. A single overhead door stood open three feet from the ground. Marcus waited inside, hands visible. Dracona approached first. Harry stayed two steps behind until they reached the concrete threshold.

“Both cars are three minutes out,” Marcus said. “Lucius took the north approach. James took the south. Neither knows the other is here yet.”

Dracona nodded once. She set the burner on a metal shelf near the door. Harry placed the encrypted device beside it. Marcus stepped aside as the first sedan pulled through the south entrance. James Potter stepped out alone. He scanned the space before his eyes settled on Harry.

Lucius Malfoy’s car followed thirty seconds later. The elder Malfoy exited with the same deliberate pace he used in every meeting. He registered James immediately. Neither man spoke. Marcus closed the overhead door halfway. The four principals stood in the remaining open space. White light from the overhead fixtures cast hard shadows across the concrete floor.

Dracona opened the device. The audio file appeared as a single line of text. She hit play. Lucius’s recorded voice filled the warehouse with the same confirmation they had heard in the safehouse. The words carried clearly across the concrete.

James turned toward Lucius. “You killed my men three years ago and blamed it on a failed negotiation.”

Lucius did not answer. He studied the device instead. Dracona paused the recording.

Harry placed the printed ceasefire document on the same metal shelf. “Both of you sign. Termination orders end tonight. The eastern channel stays open but neutral. No further movement against either heir.”

James looked at the document. Lucius picked up the pen first. His signature appeared in the first blank. James added his own beneath it. Neither man offered additional words. Marcus collected the signed pages and handed one copy to each father. Dracona retrieved the device and powered it down.

They left the warehouse the same way they had entered. Marcus remained behind to manage the departure. Dracona and Harry walked back to the sedan through the same access road. She started the engine without waiting for further confirmation. Harry destroyed both burner phones against the curb before climbing into the passenger seat.

The sedan reached the city limits thirty minutes later. Marcus waited at the predetermined exit point near an abandoned service station. He handed over two sealed envelopes containing new identification and access codes to offshore accounts. Dracona ripped the old identification cards into strips and dropped them through the storm drain beside the pump.

Marcus returned to his own vehicle and drove north. Dracona turned the sedan toward the private airfield two miles east. Harry opened one envelope and verified the names printed on the new documents. Dracona checked the fuel gauge. The needle sat near three-quarters.

The airfield came into view after another eight minutes. A single jet waited on the tarmac with engines already warming. Dracona parked beside the security gate and killed the engine. █<|eos|>