Chapter 9 - The Final Betrayal
The sterile interior of the ambulance instantly transformed into a terrifying, inescapable metal cage.
The fake paramedic stared at me with completely dead, emotionless eyes, keeping his silenced pistol perfectly steady.
"Marcus sends his absolute final regards," the assassin whispered, revealing the ultimate depth of the lieutenant's betrayal.
Marcus hadn't just sold Ethan out to the Romanos; he had planted sleeper agents within our own medical extraction team.
"No!" I screamed, instinctively throwing my entire body forcefully over Leo to shield him completely.
Ethan, despite suffering from massive blood loss and a severe stab wound, moved with terrifying, superhuman speed.
He lunged fiercely upward from the stretcher, grabbing the assassin's wrist with an iron-tight, bone-crushing grip.
The silenced pistol fired a single, muffled shot that embedded harmlessly into the thick metal roof of the ambulance.
Ethan twisted the man's arm violently backward, resulting in a sickening, loud crack of breaking bone.
The assassin screamed in absolute agony, dropping the deadly weapon onto the bloody floorboards.
Ethan delivered a devastating, brutal elbow strike directly to the man's temple, instantly knocking him completely unconscious.
The ambulance driver, realizing his partner had failed the assassination attempt, slammed aggressively on the brakes.
The heavy vehicle swerved wildly across the wet asphalt, screeching to a violent, jarring halt in a deserted industrial alleyway.
"Get out of the rig, right now!" Ethan commanded, kicking the rear doors completely open with his heavy boots.
We tumbled out into the freezing night air, Ethan keeping his recovered pistol raised and ready for another attack.
The corrupt driver climbed out of the front cab, raising a heavy shotgun toward us.
Ethan didn't hesitate for a single fraction of a second; he fired two flawless, precise shots directly into the driver's chest.
The man collapsed heavily onto the wet pavement, officially ending the immediate, terrifying threat to our lives.
I leaned against the side of the ambulance, panting heavily and clutching my crying son so tightly my arms ached.
Ethan dropped the empty pistol and stumbled toward me, collapsing heavily onto his knees.
The sudden burst of violent adrenaline had completely drained the last remaining ounces of his physical strength.
"Ethan, stay with me, please stay awake!" I begged frantically, pressing my hands tightly against his bleeding shoulder wound.
His bright green eyes fluttered dangerously, his face becoming terrifyingly pale under the dim glow of the streetlights.
"I love you, Mariah," he whispered weakly, his head falling heavily against my chest.
I screamed desperately into the dark, empty alleyway, praying to any listening god that my son would not lose his father on the very day they finally met.
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Suddenly, the blinding headlights of a massive, heavily armored convoy flooded the dark alleyway completely.
Dozens of elite, loyal syndicate soldiers poured out of the vehicles, led by Ethan's most trusted, uncorrupted captain.
