Chapter 47: Chapter 47: The Choices of the Elite

The digital clock on his phone read 5:50 AM by the time Alexander finally made it back from Marcus’s room.

Marcus always loved to make the same stupid joke about it.

"If you’re ever on fire, just call 911" though he certainly wasn’t talking about a municipal emergency.

Dawn was already threatening to break over the city skyline bleeding a faint hazy gray into the dark sky.

Alexander walked into his own suite completely running on empty.

He had a mandatory lecture at exactly 7:00 AM with Professor Isabella and missing her class was absolutely out of the question—she was notorious for dropping anyone who failed to show up on time and she had already kicked him out of the classroom the day before.

Honestly who even needs school at this point? thought Alexander staring blankly at his astronomical banking app balance.

He was making more money in a single night than most graduates made in a decade.

"No no no"

"I’m not dropping out"

"I’m finishing this."

He shook his head to clear the lazy thoughts and stepped straight into the bathroom turning the shower knob fully to the right to blast himself with ice-cold water.

The freezing shock instantly forced his lungs to expand vaporizing his exhaustion and kickstarting his adrenaline-soaked nervous system.

When he walked out of the bathroom with a towel around his waist he noticed something new.

The single customized designer suit that the agency had originally left in his wardrobe was no longer alone.

Hanging neatly in rows were several brand-new luxury casual outfits complete with premium denim silk shirts and Italian leather jackets.

"They really think of everything, don’t they?" whispered Alexander a faint smile on his lips as he pulled on a pair of perfectly fitted dark jeans and a crisp deep-blue button-down dress shirt.

He strapped his tactical holster back onto his chest covering it smoothly with his shirt. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

He was just about to call an Uber briefly wishing he still had his black Audi but he remembered it was currently sitting in a TMC facility undergoing forensic detailing and mechanical restoration.

As he walked over to the desk to grab his wallet his eyes caught a sudden metallic glint right next to his watch boxes.

Sitting on the polished wood were two entirely new sets of car keys.

Alexander froze his eyes narrowing as he looked around the silent empty suite.

What the hell... when did they even sneak in here to leave these? he thought a cold shiver running down his spine at the absolute terrifying reach of the agency’s cleaning crews.

But the lingering paranoia was instantly replaced by a sudden surge of boyish excitement.

He snatched both key fobs off the table and took the elevator straight down to the hotel’s private underground parking garage.

The elevator doors slid open and Alexander stepped out onto the pristine concrete floor immediately scanning the row of luxury vehicles.

There parked directly beneath the bright fluorescent lights of the VIP section stood a mechanical beast.

It was a brand-new Shelby Mustang GT500.

The sleek aggressive body was painted in a flawless metallic silver bisected perfectly by two iconic deep-blue racing stripes running from the hood to the rear spoiler.

It looked absolutely ferocious radiating raw unadulterated American muscle.

"Oh, you beautiful monster" laughed Alexander happily his face lighting up with a massive grin as he pointed the silver-accented key fob at the muscle car and pressed the unlock button.

CHIRP! CHIRP!

The sharp electronic sound didn’t come from the Mustang.

Instead the amber LED headlights of the vehicle parked directly next to it flashed in synchronization.

Alexander blinked in confusion his eyes drifting over to a car he hadn’t even noticed in his initial excitement.

Standing in the adjacent stall was a brand-new BMW M4 Grand Coupe.

It was a stunning aggressive four-door sports sedan painted in a deep menacing matte black with subtle polished silver accents around the grille and brake calipers.

He stared at the European sports car then looked back at the silver Shelby.

"You bastards did this on purpose, didn’t you?!" shouted Alexander toward the empty garage ceiling a loud disbelieving laugh escaping his throat.

It wasn’t that the BMW M4 was a bad car by any stretch of the imagination—it was a high-performance German-engineered luxury masterpiece that most people could only dream of owning.

But come on.

It simply wasn’t a seven-hundred-horsepower Mustang GT500.

Alexander smoothly opened the door of the matte-black BMW M4 and slid into the carbon-fiber bucket seat the premium leather instantly contouring perfectly to his frame.

The cabin smelled of brand-new luxury and high-end electronics.

He pulled out the heavy 9mm tactical pistol.

His case was still locked in the trunk of his Audi back at the TMC facility and he didn’t feel comfortable leaving a classified firearm lying around loose in his hotel room—there was no telling who might sneak in to audit his quarters.

He popped the dashboard panel and tucked the weapon securely into the glove compartment locking it with a quick snap.

"Let’s see what you can do" whispered Alexander pressing the vibrant red engine-start button.

The twin-turbo engine roared to life with a deep throaty German growl that vibrated through the concrete floor of the garage.

Alexander dropped the transmission into drive cruised past the security gates and smoothly accelerated onto the wide empty city avenue.

The morning air was crisp and chilly the sky fading from dark gray to a soft amber hue.

There was still plenty of time before his 7:00 AM lecture so he kept his pace relaxed enjoying the effortless handling of the sports sedan.

He rolled up to a major intersection and brought the BMW to a smooth stop as the traffic light turned a solid red.

BRRRRMMMM! BRRRRMMMM!

A deafening high-pitched mechanical shriek shattered the morning silence.

Alexander glanced to his left as a sleek exotic Porsche GT in racing white glided up directly into the adjacent lane.

The driver—a young arrogant-looking guy wearing oversized designer sunglasses—looked over at the BMW a smug mocking smirk plastered across his face as he aggressively mashed his accelerator making his V10 engine roar in open defiance.