Chapter 7 - The Desperate Breach
The heavy smell of gasoline seeped through the tiny cracks around the panic room door.
I heard Noah coughing violently inside the sealed steel chamber.
My heart pounded furiously, but my mind shifted entirely into a cold, calculated combat mode.
I shoved Daniel aside and examined the electronic keypad locking the heavy steel door.
It was a military-grade encryption lock, completely impossible to hack in under three minutes without specialized equipment.
I needed brute force, and I needed it immediately.
I scanned the warehouse floor, my night-vision goggles illuminating the massive industrial equipment scattered around.
Sitting in the far corner was a heavy-duty propane forklift used for moving massive steel crates.
I sprinted toward the machine, ignoring the searing pain shooting through my shattered pelvis with every step.
I climbed into the driver’s seat and hot-wired the ignition using the tip of my combat knife.
The engine roared to life with a deafening mechanical scream.
I slammed the gearshift into drive and pointed the heavy steel forks directly at the reinforced door.
“Daniel, get out of the way,” I yelled over the roaring engine.
Daniel scrambled desperately behind a pile of wooden pallets, completely useless as always.
I pressed the gas pedal all the way to the floorboard, bracing myself for a massive, violent impact.
The heavy forklift slammed into the panic room door with the force of a freight train.
The entire warehouse shook violently, sending dust and debris raining down from the high ceiling.
The steel door bent inward under the immense pressure, but the heavy deadbolts refused to break.
I backed the machine up, my head spinning from the severe whiplash of the initial crash.
I heard Vance laughing through the crushed metal of the door.
“One minute left, Emma.”
I gritted my teeth, shifted into a higher gear, and drove the forklift forward for a second strike.
This time, the heavy steel deadbolts completely sheared off their hinges with a loud, metallic snap.
The door crashed violently backward into the panic room, crushing the heavy control panel on the wall.
I jumped down from the forklift with my weapon drawn, rushing blindly through the toxic fumes.
Noah was tied to a metal pipe in the corner, his eyes wide with absolute terror.
Vance was standing right beside him, holding a brightly burning flare over the gasoline-soaked floor.
I raised my pistol and aimed directly at Vance’s chest.
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“Put it down, Vance, or you die right here.”
Vance smiled a wicked, terrifying smile and slowly opened his hand.
