Chapter 5 - Fire on the Water
The digital timer on the laptop screen hit zero.
A massive shockwave violently threw me against the steel bulkhead.
Deafening explosions tore through the hull of the cargo ship.
Flames erupted from the lower decks and instantly consumed the surrounding hallways.
Adrian grabbed my waist and pulled me up from the burning floor.
Thick black smoke filled our lungs and made it impossible to see the exit.
We stumbled through the blazing corridor as metal beams collapsed all around us.
I fired my weapon blindly at the shadows as Julian’s hidden mercenaries tried to ambush us in the smoke.
Adrian moved with lethal precision as he took down enemies despite his long physical recovery.
We reached the edge of the ship just as a secondary explosion ripped through the engine room.
We leaped over the railing and plummeted into the freezing ocean water below.
The impact knocked the breath from my lungs and dragged me into the dark depths.
I kicked my legs furiously and broke the surface to gasp for air.
Adrian emerged beside me and towed me toward a small floating dock hidden under the pier.
We collapsed onto the wet wood and coughed up seawater.
We had survived the trap but we had lost precious time.
I checked my waterproof watch and realized the two-hour deadline was officially over.
A horrifying scream threatened to tear out of my throat.
Adrian pulled a waterproof tracker from his pocket and showed me a blinking red dot on a digital map.
He explained that he had secretly planted a tracking bug in the medical bracelet my mother always wore.
The signal was broadcasting from an abandoned chemical plant on the opposite side of the city.
We stole a motorcycle from a nearby alley and raced through the flooded streets.
The wind whipped through my wet hair as I clung tightly to Adrian's waist.
We arrived at the heavily guarded chemical plant just as the sun began to rise.
We quietly eliminated the guards at the perimeter and sneaked through a shattered window.
We navigated through a maze of rusty pipes and massive chemical vats.
We found my mother tied to a chair in the center of a large processing room.
Julian stood beside her with a wicked serrated knife pressed against her throat.
I aimed my gun at his head and ordered him to step away from my mother.
Julian laughed out loud and asked if I really wanted to know the truth about my father's death.
He pressed the blade harder against her skin and looked directly at Adrian.
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Julian revealed that it was not a rogue lieutenant who ordered the massacre of the Romano family.
He smiled and announced that Adrian’s own father had paid for the hit.
