Chapter 3 - The Escape
The rain beat down aggressively against the hood of Evan's car.
The mercenaries fanned out across the driveway, raising their weapons in unison.
These were not local police officers or private security guards.
They moved with the tactical precision of a highly trained paramilitary unit.
Chase had clearly prepared for the possibility that his corporate treason would be discovered.
I dove into the driver's seat of Evan's heavy sports utility vehicle.
I shoved the key into the ignition and slammed the engine into gear.
Bullets shattered the windshield as I pressed the accelerator firmly to the floor.
I did not drive toward the heavily blocked front gate.
I steered the heavy vehicle directly across the manicured lawn toward the decorative stone wall.
The SUV smashed through the bricks, launching into the air before crashing down onto the coastal highway.
I fought the steering wheel to regain control as the tires slipped on the wet asphalt.
My heart pounded against my ribs, but my hands remained perfectly steady.
I checked the rearview mirror and saw two of the armored vehicles tearing through the broken wall behind me.
They were gaining speed rapidly on the winding coastal road.
I reached over and opened Evan's laptop bag to secure the computer.
A small red light was blinking rhythmically on the side of the battery pack.
It was a military grade tracking beacon.
Evan had not been trying to help me when he told me where the laptop was.
He had sent me directly into a trap.
I rolled down the window and threw the blinking tracker out into the dark night.
I took a sharp turn down a narrow dirt road leading toward the ocean cliffs.
I pressed the brake pedal to slow down before the sharp drop.
The pedal went completely flat against the floorboard.
The brakes had been entirely disabled.
I was traveling at seventy miles per hour directly toward a massive cliff edge.
I unbuckled my seatbelt and grabbed the laptop bag tightly against my chest.
I opened the driver's side door and threw my body out of the speeding vehicle.
I hit the muddy ground and rolled violently through the thick brush.
The SUV soared off the cliff and exploded in a massive fireball over the ocean.
I lay in the mud, bruised and bleeding, as the mercenary vehicles sped past my location toward the fiery wreckage.
I pulled my cell phone from my pocket and dialed my commanding officer.
"Captain Miller, this is Commander Maddox, and I need immediate extraction," I gasped.
Captain Miller remained completely silent for a long moment.
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"I am sorry, Lauren, but you are currently wanted for corporate espionage and treason," Miller replied.
"The military police have shoot to kill orders for your arrest."
