Chapter 5 - THE SIEGE
Shrapnel and shattered metal rained down across the concrete floor. Smoke poured into the warehouse as the blinding headlights of three heavy armored trucks lit up the dark interior.
"AMBUSH!" Viktor roared, drawing his weapon and shoving Damian and me behind a thick steel shipping container just as a hail of automatic gunfire shattered the darkness.
RAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
Sparks flew off the metal walls. Dr. Vance let out a bloodcurdling scream as bullets riddled his chair, killing him instantly before he could reveal the location of the safe.
"Maya! Stay down!" Damian commanded, throwing his heavy body over mine, protecting my head with his arms as concrete dust filled the air.
"Who are they?!" I screamed over the deafening roar of gunfire.
"Saint Jude’s board members!" Damian growled, pulling two heavy magazines from his belt and reloading his sidearm. "Vance’s handler knew he got picked up! They're burning the evidence!"
Through the thick smoke, a heavy mechanical voice echoed over a loudspeaker outside.
"Damian Marchetti! Hand over the girl, Maya Lin, and the records, or none of you leave this docks alive! The hospital board controls this territory now!"
Damian stood up behind the steel container, his dark eyes burning with pure, unadulterated fury. He looked down at me, pulling a small silver knife from his boot and slipping it into my hand.
"If anyone gets past me," Damian whispered, his face inches from mine, "you cut their throat. Understand?"
I gripped the cold handle of the knife, nodding fiercely. "I'm not dying here, Damian! My babies are waiting for me!"
A cold, proud smile broke across Damian's face. "That's my girl."
Damian turned and stepped out from behind the container, firing with terrifying, lethal precision. Headshots echoed through the warehouse as three enemy gunmen crumpled to the floor. Viktor and the remaining Marchetti security guards pushed forward, laying down heavy suppression fire.
"FLANK THEM!" Viktor shouted, tossing a flashbang grenade toward the armored trucks.
BANG!
A blinding white light and concussive blast shook the entire building. Taking advantage of the enemy's temporary blindness, Damian charged forward like an unstoppable force of nature, single-handedly neutralizing the remaining mercenaries with brutal, military combat efficiency.
Within four chaotic, terrifying minutes, the gunfire stopped.
The warehouse was dead silent, save for the crackle of burning tires and the sound of falling rain outside.
Damian walked back toward me through the smoke, stepping over the fallen bodies of the attackers. His shirt was torn, covered in soot and blood—none of it his own. He holstered his weapon and reached his hand down to me.
"Are you hurt?" he asked, his voice rough.
I took his hand, letting him pull me up. My knees were shaking, but I looked into his eyes and shook my head. "I'm okay."
"Vance is dead," Damian said, glancing toward the body in the chair. "He took the location of the main ledger to his grave."
"No, he didn't," I said, my mind racing through what Vance had screamed right before the explosion. "He said it was in the safe at his private clinic at Saint Jude's! I worked at that clinic as a student nurse, Damian! I know where his private office safe is hidden behind the anatomical wall chart!"
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Damian stared at me, a mixture of awe and fierce determination flooding his features. He grabbed the back of my neck, pulling my forehead against his.
"Then we strike Saint Jude's tonight," Damian declared darkly. "We get that ledger, we expose every monster involved, and we secure your children's future forever."
