Chapter 16 - The Setup
The server room became a chaotic strobe light of deadly gunfire.
Bullets chewed through the expensive cooling units, spraying pressurized liquid freon into the air, creating a thick, blinding fog in the darkness.
"Find them!" El Espectro roared in Spanish, firing blindly into the maze of steel racks.
Daniel kept his body perfectly low, pulling Victoria through the narrow spaces between the towering servers. His breathing was slow, controlled. He had spent years repairing heavy machinery in dark, cramped spaces. He was completely in his element.
"We need to reach the ventilation shaft at the back wall," Daniel whispered into Victoria’s ear. "Stay right behind me."
They crawled through the freezing freon fog. The heavy boots of the cartel enforcers stomped furiously around them.
Suddenly, a mercenary stepped around the corner, his tactical flashlight cutting through the mist, illuminating Daniel’s face.
Before the man could raise his rifle, Daniel lunged upward. He drove the heel of his palm directly into the man’s chin, snapping his head back, and violently stripped the heavy rifle from his hands in one fluid motion.
Daniel swung the heavy stock of the rifle like a baseball bat, striking the man in the temple and knocking him instantly unconscious.
Daniel didn't shoot. Firing the weapon would give away their exact location to the rest of the squad.
He tossed the rifle aside and pulled Victoria toward the metal grating of the massive ventilation return duct.
Using the tactical blade strapped to his ankle, Daniel silently unscrewed the four heavy bolts holding the grate in place. He pulled the heavy steel cover away and hoisted Victoria into the dark, metallic tunnel.
He climbed in right behind her and pulled the grate back into place just as three cartel soldiers rounded the corner, shining their lights on the empty floor where they had just been.
Daniel and Victoria crawled through the dusty, claustrophobic air ducts for twenty agonizing minutes, moving upward toward the parking garage level.
They finally kicked open a vent and dropped onto the cold concrete of the deserted underground parking structure.
They rushed to Victoria’s sleek, unmarked backup car, a reinforced sedan she kept hidden for emergencies.
As they sped out of the garage and into the chaotic, rain-slicked city streets, the radio crackled to life with an emergency news bulletin.
"Breaking news from the financial district," the news anchor's panicked voice echoed in the car. "A massive explosion and fire have ripped through the Bennett Technologies headquarters. The FBI has surrounded the building."
Victoria gripped the steering wheel, her knuckles turning white. "Arthur blew up the server room to cover his tracks. He has the Aegis code."
"Listen," Daniel said, pointing to the radio.
"Authorities have just released the name of the prime suspect in the bombing," the anchor continued. "An arrest warrant has been issued for Daniel Carter, the Vice President of Global Operations. Security footage allegedly shows Carter planting explosive devices in the sublevels earlier today. He is considered armed and extremely dangerous."
Daniel stared out the window at the passing streetlights. His chest felt incredibly tight.
Arthur Sterling had not just stolen the defense grid; he had framed Daniel for the destruction of the company. In the eyes of the entire world, Daniel was now a domestic terrorist.
"He is using the media to force me into hiding," Daniel said, his voice eerily calm. "If I go to the police, Arthur’s men inside the department will kill me before I reach a holding cell."
"What about Emma and Megan?" Victoria asked, panic rising in her voice. "If the FBI thinks you are a terrorist, they will raid the hotel."
Daniel immediately pulled out his burner phone and dialed Jax.
"Jax, it's Carter," Daniel said quickly. "The board is flipped. The FBI is coming for me. You need to move my family now."
"I saw the news, brother," Jax replied, the sound of heavy engines roaring in the background. "I am already two steps ahead. I packed up your sister and your daughter ten minutes ago. We are in an armored convoy heading to a secure black-site safehouse outside the city. They are completely safe, and they are off the grid."
"Did you tell them what is happening?" Daniel asked, his heart aching.
"I told them it was a corporate security drill," Jax said. "Emma is watching cartoons in the back seat. But Carter, you are entirely on your own out there. You are the most wanted man in the country right now."
"I know," Daniel said. "Keep them safe, Jax. No matter what."
Daniel hung up the phone and looked at Victoria.
"My family is secure," Daniel said. "But I am a ghost. I cannot go home, I cannot use my bank accounts, and I cannot be seen."
"Then we disappear," Victoria said, turning the car toward the dark industrial outskirts of the city. "And we plan our war."
"Arthur thinks he won because he has the code," Daniel said, his eyes burning with a cold, relentless fury. "But he forgot one thing."
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"What is that?" Victoria asked.
"He forgot that I am the man who built the infrastructure of this city," Daniel replied. "I know every hidden wire, every blind spot, and every backdoor. Arthur Sterling wants to play in the shadows? I am going to show him what the dark really looks like."
