Chapter 6 - The Glass Labyrinth
"Run!" Elara shouted.
They sprinted down the executive hallway, laser sights cutting through the darkness behind them. Julian grabbed a heavy bronze sculpture from a pedestal and hurled it backward, shattering a glass partition and forcing the mercenaries to duck.
They burst into the executive elevator lobby. Julian punched the button for the atrium.
Bullets struck the marble walls around them, sending chips of stone flying. The elevator doors slid open, and they dove inside just as the glass doors shattered from the gunfire.
Julian slammed his hand on the ground floor button. The elevator plummeted downward.
"We have the drive," Julian panted, holding up the flashing silver USB stick. "We just need to get out of the building and upload it."
"They'll have the lobby locked down," Elara said, her eyes fierce. "We have to fight our way out."
The elevator doors opened to the grand atrium—the amber-lit, cinematic masterpiece where this nightmare had begun.
May you like
But it wasn't empty. Marcus Valerius and Silas Thorne stood in the center of the room, flanked by twenty armed guards.
"End of the line, kids," Marcus said, stepping forward, a suppressed pistol in his hand. "Hand over the drive. I’ll make your deaths painless."
