Chapter 6 - The Vault
"You left them alone at the motel?" Laura gasped, grabbing the key from her pocket.
"I moved them to a secondary safehouse before I came here," Mike reassured her.
"We need to get into the vault right now before Vincent realizes what happened."
Laura pulled her master access card from her wallet and ran toward the massive steel door.
The vault required dual authentication, which meant she needed a code and a biometric scan.
She swiped her card, typed her code, and placed her hand on the glass scanner.
The heavy locking mechanisms clicked loudly, and the massive steel door swung open.
They rushed inside the quiet, temperature-controlled room filled with metal boxes.
"What number are we looking for?" Mike asked, shining his flashlight on the walls.
"Box 412," Laura replied, scanning the numbers quickly.
She found it on the bottom row near the back corner.
She inserted the jagged metal key and turned it sharply to the right.
She inserted her master bank key into the second slot and turned it to the left.
The metal door popped open with a soft click.
Laura pulled the long metal container out and placed it on a viewing table.
She opened the lid, expecting to see stacks of cash or illegal diamonds.
Instead, there was only a small, black leather notebook and a single USB drive.
Mike flipped open the notebook, scanning the handwritten pages.
"This is it," Mike whispered, his eyes widening in absolute shock.
"Vincent didn't just bribe local cops, he bought half the state legislature."
"This book proves he was laundering cartel money through real estate developments."
Laura grabbed the USB drive and slipped it into her pocket.
"We need to get this to the FBI field office in Columbus immediately," Laura said.
Before they could turn around, the massive steel door of the vault began to move.
Laura rushed forward, but it was too late.
The heavy door slammed shut with a terrifying, echoing boom.
The electronic locks engaged automatically from the outside.
"No!" Laura screamed, pounding her fists against the impenetrable steel.
Through the thick glass window of the vault door, Richard Vincent smiled at them.
He was holding the main security override terminal in his hands.
He had trapped them inside an airtight room.
Vincent picked up the intercom microphone on the wall outside.
"You are both going to suffocate in there," Vincent's voice crackled through the speaker.
"By the time the police open that door tomorrow morning, you will be dead."
"And I will retrieve my property from your cold, dead hands."
Vincent turned off the intercom and walked away into the dark lobby.
Mike checked his cell phone, but there was zero signal through the steel walls.
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The air ventilation system suddenly hissed and shut off completely.
They had less than two hours of breathable oxygen left.
