Chapter 34 The Exchange Location

• Morning came with a tension that had not fully subsided. The entire house moved in a neatly organized busyness yet full of hidden anxiety, the security team drafting contingency plans even though they knew their room for movement was so limited by the threat that was so clear against Ethan's life.
• Rania didn't have time to sleep all night, sitting in the family room with Isabel and Arkan, the three of them waiting in a heavy silence, occasionally exchanging words of encouragement that felt so thin amidst the very real fear. Aleksander himself paced endlessly in his study, unable to sit still even though his own body was experiencing tremendous exhaustion.
• Aleksander's phone rang at exactly eight in the morning, as promised. The woman's voice was heard again, giving the address of an old warehouse at the port that had long been out of operation—a location so remote it made a bad premonition crawl over everyone who heard it.