Chapter 8
Through the fractured opening of the front door, the acrid smell of burnt circuitry and ozone drifted into the bright apartment. Two figures in matching dark tactical jackets and black face coverings stood in the dim corridor, their weapons drawn with professional precision. They didn't shout warnings or demand surrender; they moved with the eerie, silent efficiency of corporate hitmen operating under strict deniability protocols.
The lead operative raised a suppressed submachine gun, aiming directly at the gap above the sideboard. Jin-woo fired first, a single, controlled shot that ricocheted off the steel door frame, sending a shower of sparks into the hallway and forcing the intruder to duck back behind the drywall.
“Suppressing fire!” Lin called out, firing two low rounds into the wooden floorboards just inside the threshold, splintering the oak and creating a hazardous zone that prevented the attackers from rushing the barricade.
Inside the apartment, the air grew thick with dust and tension. Madame Chen remained pressed against the base of the sideboard, her breathing steady, her eyes fixed on the shattered doorway. She reached into her pocket with her left hand, withdrawing a small, heavy brass key on a braided silk cord.
“The panic room,” Chen said quietly, her voice cutting through the sound of shifting boots in the hallway. “Behind the wardrobe in the master bedroom. It’s reinforced with half-inch steel plate, independent ventilation, and an encrypted satellite uplink.”
Jin-woo glanced back over his shoulder, keeping his weapon trained on the breach. “Why didn't you mention this earlier?”
“Because once you enter it, the outer perimeter locks down permanently,” Chen replied without a trace of hesitation. “It cannot be opened from the outside without a master override code held only by the structural engineer who built it—an engineer who died in the same shipyard explosion as my husband.”
Lin fired another precise shot toward the door frame as a gloved hand reached around to blind-fire into the foyer. The bullet struck the intruder’s wrist protector, eliciting a muffled grunt of pain and forcing the weapon to clatter onto the hallway carpet.
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“We go now,” Lin ordered, keeping her eyes locked on the breach. “Jin-woo, cover the retreat. Madame Chen, lead the way to the bedroom.”
They didn't break formation. Chen sprang up from the floor with surprising agility, her white suit immaculate despite the dust, and led them down the bright white hallway toward the master bedroom. Jin-woo backed away slowly, maintaining his aim on the shattered doorway while Lin covered his flanks, their white gloves stark against the dark fabric of their tactical jackets.
