Chapter 7 - The Penthouse Shootout
Bullets shred the expensive wooden table into thousands of flying splinters.
Marcus draws two heavy handguns from his tactical holster and returns fire blindly.
"Keep your heads down!" Marcus roars at the terrified teenage boys.
The federal judge dives behind his massive mahogany desk, clutching the red ledger to his chest.
The deafening sound of automatic gunfire echoes violently through the luxury penthouse.
Marcus perfectly times his shots, dropping two of the armed mercenaries with precise accuracy.
Victoria screams in frustration and ducks behind a marble pillar near the entrance.
"Do not let them get away with that book!" Victoria yells at her remaining men.
One of the mercenaries pulls a small fragmentation grenade from his combat vest.
He pulls the metal pin and tosses it directly toward the overturned wooden table.
"Grenade!" Marcus shouts, grabbing both Leo and Sam by the collars of their shirts.
He drags them forcefully toward the thick glass doors of the outdoor balcony.
The grenade detonates with a terrifying boom, destroying half of the living room.
The shockwave blows out the floor-to-ceiling windows, sending glass raining down on the city streets below.
Marcus and the boys slide out onto the rainy balcony, coughing violently from the thick gray smoke.
"We are trapped up here, Uncle Marcus," Sam cries, looking over the terrifying edge.
They are fifty stories above the pavement with absolutely nowhere to run.
Victoria steps out onto the balcony holding an assault rifle she took from her fallen guard.
"It is finally over," Victoria says, aiming the deadly weapon at Marcus's chest.
Suddenly, the loud, rhythmic chopping sound of a heavy helicopter rotor fills the night air.
A massive black tactical helicopter rises from below the roofline and hovers right beside the balcony.
A side door slides open, revealing a team of federal FBI agents aiming sniper rifles at Victoria.
"Drop your weapon immediately!" an agent's voice booms over a powerful loudspeaker.
Judge Harrison had managed to press his silent panic button under his desk before the shooting started.
Victoria looks completely stunned as the bright searchlight blinds her eyes.
She slowly lowers the assault rifle and drops it onto the wet balcony floor.
"You are under arrest for domestic terrorism and attempted murder," the federal agent announces.
Agents fast-rope down onto the balcony and aggressively tackle Victoria to the concrete.
They slap heavy steel handcuffs on her wrists and read her her rights.
Marcus helps the boys stand up, and they all breathe a massive sigh of relief.
The nightmare with their evil stepmother is finally coming to an end.
An agent approaches Marcus and hands him a secure satellite phone.
"Your brother Arthur was just freed from the local precinct," the agent informs them.
Marcus smiles and hands the phone to Leo so he can speak to his father.
Leo presses the phone to his ear, expecting to hear his dad's comforting voice.
Instead, he hears Arthur sobbing uncontrollably on the other end of the line.
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"Leo, the hospital just called me," Arthur cries in absolute devastation.
"Helena's heart stopped beating five minutes ago, and they cannot revive her," Arthur reveals.
