Chapter 4 - The Manor Infiltration
Marcus shoved his laptop aside and grabbed his tactical loadout bag from the motel floor.
He knew he could not wait for the rest of his military team to arrive from out of state.
Brooke was trapped in the belly of the beast, and her life was now in imminent, undeniable danger.
He dressed in completely black, non-reflective tactical gear and loaded his sidearm with calculated precision.
Within twenty minutes, Marcus had silently bypassed the perimeter gates of the sprawling Sterling estate.
He moved through the manicured shadows like a ghost, avoiding the sweeping beams of the security cameras.
He found the side door to the kitchen unlocked, likely left open by one of the drunken guards.
Marcus slipped inside and drew his weapon, sweeping the massive first floor with fluid, practiced movements.
He could hear angry voices echoing from the second-floor landing near Charles Sterling’s master suite.
Creeping up the grand staircase, Marcus peered through the ornate wooden banister.
Rowan was aggressively gripping Brooke by her hair, demanding to know what she was doing on the computer.
Charles Sterling stood nearby, wearing a silk robe and looking at his granddaughter with profound disgust.
Charles coldly stated that Brooke was just a traitorous liability and ordered Rowan to lock her in the basement holding cellar.
He also mentioned that an ambulance was currently en route to the local hospital to collect Lily.
Charles proudly announced they were transferring Lily to a private psychiatric facility owned by the family, where she would conveniently disappear forever.
Marcus realized with a sickening jolt that the clock had just drastically sped up.
He had to make an impossible, split-second decision between saving his brave niece or rushing to the hospital to secure his daughter.
Suddenly, the heavy front doors of the mansion were violently blown off their hinges by a massive kinetic breaching charge.
Three figures dressed in full tactical combat gear stepped through the billowing smoke, armed with suppressed assault rifles.
Marcus smiled grimly, realizing that Colonel Mitchell and the Ghost Unit had arrived completely ahead of schedule.
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But his relief was instantly shattered when the lead tactical operator lowered his weapon and pointed directly at Marcus.
The operator removed his helmet to reveal the scarred, familiar face of a man Marcus had personally sent to prison five years ago.
