Chapter 5 - The Ticking Clock
"Is that a bomb?" Nora gasped, backing away from the steel door.
Roman didn't answer, his eyes locked on the complex web of red and blue wires.
"We have to run back!" Nora screamed, grabbing Maisie tightly.
"If we go back, the hit squad will execute us," Roman said, pulling a pocketknife from his trousers.
He pried the plastic casing off the keypad, exposing the main motherboard.
Two minutes and thirty seconds left.
Roman’s hands were shaking from the severe burns, making it difficult to grip the small knife.
"Nora, I need your hands," he ordered.
She carefully set Maisie down on a wooden crate and stepped up to the door.
Roman guided her trembling fingers toward a thick yellow wire buried deep in the panel.
"When I say pull, you pull it out by the root," he instructed.
One minute remaining.
The tension in the damp air was suffocating.
"Pull," Roman commanded.
Nora yanked the yellow wire, sparks showering over her hands.
The steel vault door groaned and slowly hissed open.
"Get inside!" Roman yelled, shoving them through the heavy threshold.
They dove onto the cold metal floor of the bunker just as the timer hit zero.
A deafening roar echoed through the tunnel outside.
The blast wave slammed the heavy vault door shut, sealing it completely.
Dust and debris rained down from the ceiling as the ground shook violently.
Then, dead silence filled the room.
They had survived the explosion.
Roman helped Nora to her feet as emergency lights bathed the bunker in a green glow.
This was supposed to be a safe room, stocked with weapons and communication gear.
Instead, the weapon racks were completely empty.
A large flat-screen television on the far wall suddenly hummed to life.
A man in a sharp tailored suit was sitting on the screen, holding Roman’s gold lion lighter.
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It wasn't Roman's brother, Leo.
It was Silas, Roman's most trusted Consigliere and lifelong best friend.
