Chapter 7 - The Infiltration
The Cole Meridian headquarters towered forty-two stories above the Chicago skyline.
The building was entirely dark, suffering from the system blackout Claire had initiated.
Marcus parked the stolen SUV two blocks away in a subterranean loading dock.
“The backup generators are offline,” Marcus whispered, handing Claire a flashlight.
“The security cameras are blind, but the cartel mercenaries have night vision.”
They slipped through the shattered glass doors of the freight entrance.
The lobby looked like a war zone.
Bullet holes riddled the marble walls, and expensive abstract paintings were torn to shreds.
“They must have dragged Ethan upstairs to the executive suites,” Marcus quietly observed.
They bypassed the disabled elevators and entered the emergency stairwell.
Forty-two flights of stairs in total silence.
Claire’s lungs burned, and her bare feet bled, having discarded her heels on the twentieth floor.
When they finally reached the penthouse level, Marcus held up his fist to stop her.
He peeked through the small window of the stairwell door.
Two heavily armed men in tactical gear were guarding the hallway.
Marcus held up three fingers, silently counting down.
Two.
One.
He kicked the door open and fired two perfectly aimed suppressed shots.
Both guards dropped silently to the carpeted floor.
Claire followed him out into the hallway, her heart pounding furiously.
They moved toward Ethan’s massive corner office.
The heavy mahogany doors were slightly ajar.
Inside, Ethan was tied to a chair, his face bruised and bloody.
Vanessa stood over him, holding a terrifyingly sharp hunting knife.
Her shoulder was bandaged from Marcus’s bullet, but she looked furious.
“Open the safe, Ethan,” Vanessa hissed, pressing the blade against his throat.
“I can't!” Ethan sobbed pathetically.
“It requires dual biometric verification.”
“I need Claire's retina scan to open it!”
Vanessa pressed the blade harder, drawing a thin line of blood.
“Claire is dead.”
“So you better find another way to open it, or I will start taking your fingers.”
Marcus stepped into the doorway, raising his rifle.
“Drop the knife, Vanessa,” Marcus commanded.
Vanessa froze, turning her head slowly.
When she saw Claire standing behind Marcus, her eyes widened in pure shock.
“You have got to be kidding me,” Vanessa muttered.
“Claire!” Ethan cried out, weeping with relief.
“You came back to save me!”
Claire stepped out from behind Marcus, her expression completely devoid of pity.
“I didn't come to save you, Ethan,” Claire said coldly.
“I came to open the safe.”
She walked directly toward the massive steel vault hidden behind a painting.
“Shoot her!” Ethan screamed at Vanessa.
Before Vanessa could move, Marcus fired a warning shot into the floor at her feet.
“Drop the knife and kick it away,” Marcus ordered.
Vanessa slowly dropped the weapon, raising her hands in surrender.
Claire stood in front of the biometric scanner.
“Ethan, look at the scanner,” Claire demanded.
Ethan shook his head stubbornly.
“No.”
“If you open that safe, they will kill me!”
Marcus walked over and grabbed Ethan by the hair, violently yanking his head back.
Marcus forced Ethan’s right eye wide open and shoved his face toward the laser scanner.
The machine beeped approvingly.
Claire leaned in and let the scanner read her retina.
The heavy steel locking mechanisms echoed loudly through the silent office.
The vault door swung open.
Claire reached inside to grab the hardware key.
May you like
Her hand grasped nothing but empty air.
The shelf was completely bare.
