Swapping a Broken Heart for a New Start novel Chapter 1123

Jordan’s team wasted no time diving into the investigation. In just a few days, they came up with exactly what Dennis’s crew had found—if you wanted to meet Professor Keri, you had to go through an elaborate chain of contacts. No skipping steps, no shortcuts.

Jordan didn’t hesitate. “Nathan, set it up. Reach out, but don’t spook anyone.”

“Yes, sir,” Nathan replied and got right to work.

The next day was Saturday, the day Dennis’s team had arranged their meeting with Professor Keri’s contact.

That evening, just after eight, Aaron showed up with a quick update. “Mr. Williams, our source just got in touch. They picked a spot out in the suburbs. It’s an abandoned mountain road. We need to leave now.”

It wasn’t the location Dennis had originally guessed, but he didn’t look the least bit surprised. The meeting time and place had both changed at the last minute. It was obvious—Professor Keri was extremely careful. Changes like this were meant to throw people off. Dennis figured Keri would probably move them again after they arrived. That kind of paranoia was probably what kept him hidden all these years.

“Send someone over,” Dennis told Aaron. “You know the drill.”

Aaron nodded. “On it,” he said, then left to coordinate the team.

Later that night, a black car crawled along a deserted road on the southwest edge of town. Sammy, representing the Nightingale Team, stepped out as soon as they parked.

A handful of Keri’s men were already waiting. They looked tense, every one of them armed. When Sammy walked over, their leader stepped up and quietly exchanged a code phrase with him. Once they confirmed identities, the leader—Sampson—spoke up. “We have to search you. You know our rules, right?”

Sammy didn’t object. He nodded. “Yeah, no electronics. No comms.” He lifted his arms and let them search him, completely cooperative. Sampson signaled his team, and they moved fast, patting him down and finishing in less than half a minute.

When nothing turned up, Sampson said, “Alright. One more thing.”

Two of his men slipped a blindfold over Sammy’s eyes and put headphones over his ears. Instead of silence, the headphones blasted loud, chaotic music. Even if Sammy had superhuman hearing, he wouldn’t have caught a thing from the outside world.

Most people would’ve been on edge, but Sammy just followed Sampson’s team through the maze of hallways until they reached a giant hall.

Inside, a man in a long black robe stood at the front, praying quietly before a statue of Jesus. Sammy had a hunch who it was. He didn’t interrupt, just waited patiently.

It took almost half an hour for the prayers to end. Then the priest turned around, his gaze settling on Sammy. There was a gentle, almost amused smile on his lined face. “You’re a patient one, aren’t you?”

Sammy answered calmly. “It’s not easy getting a meeting with Professor Keri. After waiting all this time, I didn’t want to mess it up by interrupting you. What if you got annoyed and tossed me out?”

Professor Keri chuckled, stepping closer. “You’re not surprised to see me like this?”

Sammy met his gaze without blinking. “A little, sure. I mean, who would expect the famous Professor Keri to be hiding out as a priest in a place like this?”