Chapter 8 - The Siege
Time seemed to slow down completely as the green metal grenade bounced across the expensive rug.
Titan did not run away from the explosive device.
The massive dog lunged forward, clamped his jaws around the grenade, and tossed it violently out the shattered window.
A deafening explosion rocked the courtyard outside, shattering every remaining pane of glass in the room.
The shockwave knocked everyone to the floor, filling the air with thick, choking dust.
"Move down the stairs," Dante screamed, firing blindly into the smoke to keep the mercenaries back.
Elena scooped Sophia into her arms and practically threw herself into the dark tunnel.
Adrian followed closely behind her, stumbling as the poison continued to fight the antidote in his veins.
Titan bounded down the stairs last, just as Dante pulled the heavy steel hatch shut overhead.
They heard the muffled sound of bullets ricocheting off the reinforced trapdoor.
The tunnel was pitch black, illuminated only by the emergency glow sticks Dante snapped open.
They hurried down the spiral staircase until they reached a massive, circular vault door.
It looked exactly like the entrance to a bank vault, built to withstand a nuclear blast.
Adrian pressed his thumb against the glowing biometric scanner on the wall.
The machine beeped angrily and flashed a bright red error message.
"Blood toxicity too high for authorized recognition," the automated voice announced coldly.
"Try again," Dante ordered, looking nervously back up the stairs.
Adrian wiped his thumb on his jacket and pressed it harder against the glass plate.
The machine beeped red again, denying them entry to the only safe place left.
Up above, they heard the terrifying screech of a power saw cutting through the steel trapdoor.
"They are cutting through the floor," Elena cried, holding Sophia tightly against the cold stone wall.
"We are trapped down here."
Dante quickly pulled two spare magazines from his vest and loaded his final rounds.
"I will hold them on the stairs for as long as I can," Dante said grimly.
Titan stepped in front of Dante, planting his massive paws on the bottom step and letting out a demonic growl.
Adrian desperately ripped off the biometric scanner's front panel, exposing a mess of complicated wires.
"There is a manual override, but I need to short-circuit the mainframe," Adrian muttered, his hands shaking violently.
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He pulled two wires out and was about to cross them when the trapdoor above finally gave way.
A mercenary dropped a cylinder down the stairs, and thick, burning tear gas began rapidly filling the enclosed space.
