Chapter 14: The Final Stand
For three agonizing seconds, the color drained completely from Arthur Vance’s face, leaving him staring down into the basement with wide, panicked eyes. The absolute control he had projected throughout the evening shattered entirely. He looked back over his shoulder toward Victor, his voice cracking with sudden, desperate urgency. “Get the drive! If that data goes live, we’re all dead!”
Victor didn't hesitate. The professional operative drew his silenced pistol with terrifying speed, stepping past Arthur and placing his heavy boot on the top step of the concrete staircase.
Marcus didn't wait for him to descend. He pulled the trigger of the old hunting rifle. The deafening roar of the heavy caliber round echoed off the concrete walls of the basement like a thunderclap, sending a cloud of white smoke billowing across the room. The bullet shattered the wooden handrail inches from Victor’s shoulder, forcing the operative to jerk backward and duck out of the line of fire.
“Move!” Marcus yelled, cycling the bolt of the rifle with a harsh, metallic clack as he fired a second suppression shot up the stairwell.
Jane grabbed Lily, who had woken up crying in sheer terror from the deafening gunshot, and dragged the little girl toward the reinforced rear exit of the basement that led directly out to the water’s edge. Marcus backed up slowly, keeping the rifle trained on the top of the stairs, ready to take down anyone who dared push through the smoke.
From the top of the stairs, Victor cursed loudly, realizing the element of surprise was completely gone. The heavy operative lunged downward, ignoring the risk of return fire, his pistol leveling toward Marcus’s chest.
Marcus pulled the trigger again, but the rusted firing pin jammed with a sharp metallic click. The antique rifle had given out at the absolute worst possible second.
Victor grinned grimly, tightening his finger on the trigger.
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Before the shot could be fired, a heavy cast-iron maintenance wrench came flying out of the shadows from behind the stairs. Jane, having successfully pushed Lily out through the rear exit, had doubled back just far enough to hurl the heavy tool with all her strength. The wrench caught Victor squarely across the wrist, knocking the silenced pistol from his grip. The weapon clattered down the concrete steps, spinning harmlessly into the dark corner of the basement.
Marcus didn't waste a millisecond. He lunged forward across the concrete floor, tackling Victor hard around the waist and sending both men crashing into a stack of wooden storage crates. The splintering wood echoed through the room as Marcus delivered a fierce, heavy right hook to Victor’s jaw, following it with a second blow that instantly dropped the seasoned operative to the floor, unconscious and motionless.
