Chapter 7 - The Palace Siege
The heavy oak doors finally shattered inward, sending sharp wooden splinters flying across the room.
Dozens of heavily armed royal guards stormed into the lavish bedroom with their assault rifles raised.
Mira quickly unplugged the tiny microchip and shoved it securely deep into her wet pocket.
She raised her hands in the air, but the guards were not looking at her with intent to arrest.
They aimed their deadly weapons directly at the bleeding, exhausted Sheikh leaning against the wall.
These guards were completely loyal to Tariq and were actively participating in the violent military coup.
Samir realized the terrifying truth instantly and pushed himself forcefully away from the wall.
He grabbed a heavy brass lamp from the bedside table and hurled it violently at the leading guard.
"Run to the broadcast tower, Mira!" Samir roared with absolute, desperate authority.
He lunged aggressively into the group of armed men, fighting them fiercely with his bare, bloody hands.
Mira hesitated for a single fraction of a second, tears of immense guilt completely blurring her vision.
She knew that if she stayed to help him, the entire kingdom would fall to a foreign enemy tonight.
She turned around and sprinted blindly out onto the rainy, windswept royal balcony.
She climbed fearlessly down the ornate stone trellis, her wet boots slipping dangerously on the slick vines.
She hit the courtyard grass and ran wildly toward the massive communications tower on the western grounds.
Explosions echoed loudly in the distance as Tariq's foreign mercenaries began locking down the entire palace.
The once peaceful, beautiful royal grounds were completely transformed into a terrifying, deadly warzone.
She dodged blinding searchlights and heavily armed patrols, using the deep shadows to mask her movements.
She finally reached the heavy steel doors of the main broadcast facility.
She used her mother's silver key one last time to bypass the sophisticated electronic security lock.
She slipped inside the dark, quiet building and raced up the stairs toward the main control room.
She pushed the control room doors open, fully expecting the room to be completely empty.
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Instead, Tariq was standing confidently in front of the main transmission console, waiting patiently for her.
He held a massive, incredibly intimidating automatic weapon aimed directly at her chest.
