Chapter 2 - The Locked Room
The explosive sound of the shotgun blast made every single man in the boardroom jump to his feet.
Dominic did not even flinch as he kept his dead eyes locked entirely on Arthur Voss.
He knew instantly that the meeting was nothing more than a carefully orchestrated assassination plot.
The locked doors of the boardroom were the only thing standing between them and the chaos erupting outside.
Arthur pulled a suppressed pistol from beneath the table and aimed it directly at Dominic’s chest.
The other five council members scrambled back against the floor-to-ceiling windows in absolute terror.
They were wealthy businessmen who managed illegal funds, not hardened street soldiers ready for a gunfight.
Arthur laughed bitterly, declaring that Dominic's time as the head of the Chicago syndicate was officially over.
He confessed that the leg brace was just a backup plan to ensure Dominic was too weak to fight back today.
Dominic casually leaned his weight onto his cane, refusing to give Arthur the satisfaction of seeing him sweat.
He asked Arthur how much the rival cartel had paid him to betray thirty years of deep family loyalty.
Arthur sneered and replied that loyalty did not pay the bills when the empire was crumbling from within.
He cocked the hammer of the pistol, telling Dominic to get on his knees and accept his inevitable fate.
Dominic shifted his stance slightly, feeling the newly restored strength in his left leg holding firm.
He calculated the exact distance between himself, the loaded gun, and Arthur's arrogant smirk.
Suddenly, a heavy, blood-soaked body was violently thrown against the frosted glass of the boardroom door.
The impact left a horrific smear of crimson red across the expensive corporate logo etched into the glass.
Arthur momentarily took his eyes off Dominic to look at the gruesome silhouette sliding down the door.
That single second of distraction was all the opening a seasoned predator like Dominic Vale ever needed.
He swung his solid wooden cane upward with brutal, bone-shattering force aimed right at Arthur's wrist.
The wood connected with the fragile bones of Arthur's arm, producing a sickening crack that filled the room.
The pistol flew from Arthur's hand and clattered harmlessly into the far corner of the boardroom.
Arthur screamed in agony, clutching his ruined wrist as he stumbled backward into the leather chairs.
Dominic took a commanding step forward, preparing to finish the traitor with his bare hands.
He wanted to squeeze the truth out of Arthur before the attackers in the hallway breached the room.
He demanded to know exactly how many armed men Arthur had smuggled into the heavily guarded estate.
Arthur spit blood onto the carpet and smiled wildly through his immense physical pain.
He wheezed out a laugh, claiming that the men outside were not actually his own private soldiers.
He revealed that he had sold the entire estate's security blueprints to the deadliest mercenary crew in the city.
A massive explosion suddenly rocked the foundations of the mansion, shattering the panoramic windows behind them.
The heavy boardroom doors were blown completely off their hinges, flying into the room amidst a cloud of smoke.
Through the settling gray dust, four men wearing tactical gear and night-vision goggles stepped into the room.
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The lead mercenary did not even look at Dominic before he raised his assault rifle and pointed it directly at Arthur's head.
Arthur screamed in absolute betrayal as the mercenary coldly pulled the trigger without a second thought.
