Chapter 6: Breach from Within
The wooden door of Room 203 exploded inward in a shower of jagged splinters and flying insulation. A masked operative stepped through the jagged opening, leveling a submachine gun directly at the back of Clara’s head.
Maya reacted on pure instinct, abandoning her cover by the stairwell and diving across the walkway. She slammed her shoulder into the operative's chest just as he pulled the trigger. The suppressed weapon chattered wildly, sending a burst of hot lead chewing harmlessly into the dark night sky.
The impact sent both Maya and the operative crashing hard against the metal railing. The rusted iron shrieked in protest, bending outward under the kinetic force. Maya drove her elbow upward, striking the man's tactical helmet with a sickening thud, but the operative countered by sweeping her legs out from under her.
As Maya hit the concrete, the operative raised the butt of his weapon to bring it down in a crushing blow to her skull.
Before the strike could land, Jesse lunged forward. Despite his slight frame and the cuffs that still dangled loosely from one wrist, he slammed his full body weight into the operative's side, sending them both tumbling toward the edge of the second-floor drop.
"Clara, grab the bag and run!" Jesse roared, his voice straining as he grappled with the heavily armored man on the slick pavement.
Clara froze for a fraction of a second, her hands hovering over the black duffel bag. The digital timer on the device inside now glowed an angry, pulsating crimson: 00:45... 00:44...
From the parking lot below, Agent Williams opened suppressive fire with his service pistol, forcing the operative at the stairwell to retreat backward down the steps.
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"Clara, move!" Maya yelled, struggling back to her feet with a bruised shoulder and a bloody lip.
Clara grabbed the straps of the heavy duffel bag, heaving it over her shoulder just as the operative wrestling Jesse managed to draw a backup combat knife, burying the steel blade deep into Jesse's left shoulder with a muffled grunt of exertion.
