Chapter 9 - The Devil's Price
Viktor stood elegantly under a large black umbrella, completely untouched by the raging storm around him.
He smiled a cruel, golden-toothed smile as his armed men completely surrounded our exhausted bodies on the wet sand.
"You put up a very impressive fight, Michael, but your reign ends tonight," Viktor mocked loudly over the crashing waves.
I pulled Emily and Noah tightly behind my back, completely unarmed and severely wounded.
"Let the woman and the baby walk away, Viktor, this war is only between us," I pleaded desperately.
Viktor laughed a deep, booming laugh that chilled my blood far worse than the freezing ocean water.
"I am a businessman, Michael, and I do not leave dangerous loose ends alive to seek revenge later," he stated coldly.
He pulled a heavy, gold-plated revolver from his expensive cashmere coat and aimed it directly at my face.
"Transfer your entire offshore fortune into my accounts right now, and I will make your deaths completely painless," Viktor offered.
He tossed a rugged, waterproof satellite phone directly into the wet sand at my feet.
I looked back at my beautiful, shivering son, knowing I would gladly trade all the money in the world for his life.
I picked up the heavy phone with trembling fingers and began rapidly typing my highly classified banking codes.
"Do not do it, Michael, he is going to slaughter us anyway," Emily whispered fiercely into my ear.
I ignored her, pressing the final confirmation button that transferred my billion-dollar empire entirely to the Russian syndicate.
Viktor checked his own device, nodding in absolute satisfaction as the massive funds cleared instantly.
"Thank you for your generous contribution to my retirement fund," Viktor sneered wickedly.
He raised his gold gun, aiming it away from me and pointing it directly at Noah's tiny head.
"I lied about the painless part," Viktor whispered, placing his finger firmly onto the trigger.
Emily suddenly lunged forward from behind me, pulling a bright orange flare gun from her soaked apron pocket.
She did not aim the plastic weapon at Viktor or any of his heavily armed men.
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She aimed it directly at the massive, leaking fuel tank of Viktor's luxury speedboat parked on the shoreline.
She pulled the trigger, sending a blindingly hot, red fireball shooting across the dark beach.
