Chapter 3 - The Broken Farm
Darius slammed his fists against the locked steel door in the pitch-black room.
"Marcus, open this door!" he roared into the darkness.
"I am afraid I cannot do that, Darius," the voice replied through the speaker.
"The building's air ventilation system in the archives is currently malfunctioning."
Darius realized with horror that the oxygen in the airtight room would not last long.
He pulled out his phone, but the heavy steel walls blocked all cellular signals.
He refused to die in a cage built by his own company.
Darius grabbed a heavy metal fire extinguisher from the wall bracket.
He swung it with all his massive strength against the electronic locking mechanism.
It took ten agonizing minutes of relentless smashing before the control panel sparked and shattered.
Darius kicked the door open and stumbled into the hallway, gasping for air.
The floor was completely deserted.
Marcus was gone, and the server hard drives had been physically ripped from the mainframe wall.
Darius knew exactly where Marcus was going next.
He ran to his car and broke every speed limit driving to McDonough.
When he arrived at the Rooted South Produce cooperative, smoke was billowing into the sky.
Darius slammed the brakes and sprinted toward the fields.
Nia's main refrigeration warehouse was completely engulfed in aggressive, roaring flames.
Nia was standing near a tractor, her face covered in black soot.
She was desperately spraying a small garden hose at the raging inferno.
Darius ran up and grabbed her by the waist, pulling her away from the intense heat.
"Let me go, that is our entire harvest!" she screamed, fighting against his grip.
"It is too late, Nia, you have to get back!" he yelled over the sound of breaking glass.
She finally collapsed against his chest, sobbing as she watched her livelihood burn.
Darius held her tightly, realizing this was the first time he had touched her in seven years.
May you like
A black SUV suddenly tore up the dirt driveway and screeched to a halt behind them.
Four men in tactical gear stepped out, and Marcus walked out from behind them with a loaded gun.
