Chapter 4 - The Runaway
The metallic roar of the tracks filled the silence in the vestibule.
I stared down the barrel of Vance's suppressed pistol.
Marcus raised his hands slowly, stepping back against the metal wall.
"You are going to kill hundreds of innocent people for a stock price?" Marcus asked, his voice shaking.
Vance kept his eyes locked on me.
"I am securing a billion-dollar hostile takeover," Vance corrected casually.
"A tragic derailment will bankrupt Vanguard Rail Technologies by tomorrow morning."
"My firm will buy their patents for pennies on the dollar before the bodies are even identified."
Ethan stared at Vance, completely paralyzed by shock and cowardice.
"Vance, we are on this train too," Ethan pleaded.
"There is a helicopter waiting for me at the next rural crossing," Vance replied.
"I suggest the rest of you find a soft place to land."
I slowly raised my hands, stepping away from the blinking diagnostic console.
Eighteen minutes remained on the countdown timer.
I needed a distraction, and I needed it immediately.
I shifted my eyes toward Sloane, who was standing frozen near the glass doors.
Sloane saw me looking at her.
I glanced down at the heavy fire extinguisher mounted on the wall directly beside her elbow.
Sloane took a sharp, terrified breath.
Without hesitating, Sloane grabbed the heavy red canister and hurled it directly at Vance's back.
The metal cylinder struck Vance between the shoulder blades with a sickening thud.
Vance stumbled forward, his gun discharging a single bullet into the ceiling panel.
I lunged forward, grabbing Vance's wrist with both hands.
I twisted his arm using every ounce of leverage I possessed from years of turning rusted industrial wrenches.
Vance shouted in pain, dropping the weapon to the floorboards.
Marcus kicked the gun down the open inspection hatch into the roaring tracks below.
Vance recovered quickly, throwing a brutal punch that caught me across the jaw.
I slammed backward into the steel door, tasting blood in my mouth.
Before Vance could attack again, the entire train lurched violently forward.
The digital dashboard had just bypassed the speed regulators.
The engine was now drawing maximum power from the electrical grid, accelerating us blindly down the track.
The force threw all of us to the floor.
Vance scrambled to his feet, ignoring us as he sprinted through the glass doors toward the rear cars.
"He's heading for the manual emergency release at the back of the train!" Marcus yelled.
I pushed myself up, wiping blood from my chin.
"If he destroys that release, we have absolutely zero chance of stopping," I said.
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I looked at Ethan, who was cowering on the floor, protecting his expensive suit.
I stepped over my husband and ran after the man trying to kill us all.
