Chapter 7 - The Master Password
The pouring rain washed over Marcus’s face as he stared up at the suspended shipping container. He could hear the faint, muffled sounds of Lily crying over the roaring wind of the massive storm. “Ten seconds, Marcus,” Diana reminded him cheerfully, holding a walkie-talkie up to her red lips. Marcus knew perfectly well that his offshore accounts held over three billion dollars in untraceable cryptocurrency. It was the emergency fund his grandfather had secretly built to protect the family from hostile takeovers. “Fine,” Marcus shouted, lowering his head in total defeat. “The password is 'Genesis', followed by the birth date of my mother.” Diana quickly typed the complex code into her waterproof tablet. A bright green checkmark appeared on her screen, signaling that the massive fortune was officially transferring to her syndicate. “Thank you for your generous contribution to my family's legacy,” Diana smiled triumphantly. “Now let them go,” Marcus demanded, his voice thick with raw desperation. Diana looked at Marcus with eyes that held absolutely no humanity or mercy. “I’m afraid I can’t do that,” she whispered coldly. She pressed the button on her walkie-talkie and gave a single, terrifying order. “Drop them.” The heavy mechanical gears of the industrial crane screeched loudly as the brake was suddenly released. Marcus screamed in pure agony as the massive steel container plummeted downward toward the dark, freezing waters of the bay. A massive splash erupted into the stormy night air as the metal box sank instantly beneath the violent waves. “No!” Marcus roared, violently twisting his body and shattering the nose of the mercenary holding him down. Marcus grabbed the dropped combat knife from the muddy ground and sliced through his thick plastic zip-ties in one swift motion. Before Diana's guards could even raise their weapons, the deafening sound of a low-flying helicopter ripped through the storm. A blinding white searchlight pinned Diana and her men against the shipping crates. But it wasn't the police. A squad of elite, fully armed military operatives fast-roped down from the chopper, instantly disarming Diana’s mercenaries with brutal efficiency. A tall man stepped out of the shadows, holstering a massive hand cannon. It was Arthur Ellison, Marcus’s father, stepping perfectly out of the pouring rain. “I told you business was ruthless, Diana,” Arthur said with a cold, calculating smile. “But nobody steals from the Ellison family and lives to spend it.” Arthur snapped his fingers, and a massive scuba recovery team immediately dove into the freezing water to retrieve the sunken container.
