Chapter 4 - The Escape
The heavy steel chair struck General Vance across the jaw with a sickening crunch.
He collapsed onto the concrete floor, completely unconscious before he even landed.
I knew my career was over, but my mother's life was the only thing that mattered now.
I grabbed the general's electronic keycard from his uniform pocket and swiped it at the door.
The heavy magnetic lock clicked open, releasing me into the dimly lit corridor.
I moved silently through the restricted sector, using my knowledge of the base's blind spots to avoid the cameras.
I slipped out through the loading dock and stole a maintenance truck idling near the perimeter fence.
I tore out of the base, keeping the headlights off until I reached the main highway.
I dialed the hospital from a burner phone I kept in my emergency tactical bag.
The nurse on the fourth floor answered cheerfully.
I asked to be connected to Nancy's room immediately.
The nurse paused, typing something on her keyboard.
She told me my mother had just been discharged twenty minutes ago by her son-in-law.
A wave of pure terror washed over me.
Ryan had bypassed the police hold and taken her.
I hacked into the GPS system of Ryan's SUV using a backdoor program I bought years ago.
The tracking dot was moving away from the city limits toward an abandoned industrial shipyard.
I pushed the heavy truck to its absolute limit, the engine screaming as I sped through red lights.
I arrived at the desolate shipyard just as the sun began to peek over the horizon.
Ryan's black SUV was parked near a rusting cargo container.
I drew my backup weapon and approached the vehicle, my finger resting on the trigger.
I yanked the driver's side door open, ready to fire.
The driver's seat was completely empty.
Suddenly, I heard a muffled thumping sound coming from the trunk.
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I quickly popped the latch and lifted the heavy metal lid.
Sergeant Christopher was lying inside, gagged and bleeding from a gunshot wound to the shoulder.
