Chapter 2 - The Extraction
I shifted the SUV into reverse and slammed my heavy boot onto the gas pedal.
The massive vehicle lurched backward, tearing the front bumper away from the mercenaries' tactical van.
Gunfire erupted instantly, sending a hail of hot bullets sparking against my reinforced doors.
I grabbed my service pistol from the center console and fired blindly through the shattered windshield.
One of the aggressive mercenaries dropped to the asphalt, clutching his bleeding shoulder in extreme pain.
I spun the heavy steering wheel aggressively, throwing the SUV into a tight tactical turn.
We rocketed rapidly out of the hospital parking lot and sped onto the desolate highway.
Emily was hyperventilating wildly beside me, clutching the bloody flash drive tightly to her chest.
I ordered her to keep her head down and to apply firm pressure to her bleeding lip.
My mind was racing through a dozen different evasion tactics I had learned during my overseas combat deployments.
I knew the corrupt Prescotts would use all their immense wealth to rapidly track my license plates.
I veered violently off the main road and plunged deeply into the dark, abandoned industrial district on the edge of town.
I hid the heavily damaged SUV inside an empty warehouse and quickly dragged Emily into the shadows.
We sat quietly in the freezing darkness, listening intensely to the distant wail of approaching police sirens.
I pulled out my encrypted military laptop and connected the bloody flash drive directly to the secure terminal.
The computer screen illuminated our tired faces with a harsh blue light as a complex password prompt appeared.
Emily typed in the secret passcode she had stolen from Ethan's private home office.
The heavy files began to decrypt rapidly, revealing a massive web of offshore bank accounts and illegal weapons shipments.
The Prescotts were not just wealthy socialites, they were the biggest illegal arms dealers on the entire eastern seaboard.
Suddenly, my secure burner phone began to vibrate violently deep inside my tactical vest.
Only exactly three trusted people in the entire world had access to this classified number.
I answered the secure call cautiously, expecting to hear the commanding voice of my military superior.
Instead, Margaret Prescott's smooth, arrogant voice echoed terrifyingly through the encrypted line.
She calmly informed me that she had just officially authorized a two-million-dollar cash bounty on my head.
She claimed every corrupt cop, ruthless gang member, and dangerous mercenary in the city was currently hunting us down.
I told her fiercely that she had absolutely no idea who she was dealing with.
Margaret laughed coldly and stated that she knew exactly who I was.
She suggested that I look out the dark warehouse window before making any more empty threats.
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I slowly peered through the dirty glass and felt my racing stomach completely drop to the floor.
Dozens of armed men were already surrounding the building, and they were actively carrying military-grade explosive charges.
