Chapter 3 - The Traitor Inside
Sienna walked into the glowing toy gallery, her friendly retail smile replaced by cold, calculating efficiency.
The three armed mercenaries fanned out, their suppressed weapons drawn and ready to fire.
"Check the back office," Sienna ordered, her voice completely devoid of emotion.
Inside the office, Gideon quickly locked the heavy mahogany door and engaged the electronic deadbolt.
He looked at the two terrified girls and placed a finger to his lips, demanding absolute silence.
Ren finally dropped her rusted knife, realizing that Gideon was truly on their side.
"There is a hidden service tunnel beneath this floor," Gideon whispered, pressing a button under his desk.
A section of the hardwood floor silently slid open, revealing a dark, narrow staircase.
He ushered Ren and Nova down into the darkness, grabbing the heavy backpack before following them.
The heavy office door suddenly splintered as one of the mercenaries kicked it with massive force.
Gideon pulled the floorboard shut just as the mercenaries burst into the empty room.
He guided the girls through the pitch-black maintenance tunnels using the small flashlight on his phone.
They could hear the furious shouts of the men echoing through the floorboards directly above their heads.
"Where are we going?" Ren whispered, gripping Gideon's expensive suit jacket tightly.
"To my car, and then we disappear," Gideon assured her.
They reached the end of the tunnel and emerged into the private underground parking garage.
Gideon unlocked his armored sports car and strapped the two little girls into the backseat.
He pressed the ignition button, but the car's advanced dashboard screen suddenly flashed blood red.
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A digital message appeared on the screen, completely draining the color from Gideon's face.
"All bank accounts erased, identity revoked, welcome to the ghost protocol, Mr. Hail."
