Chapter 2 - The Ceiling Hatch
Norah processed the horrifying truth while keeping the bloody fabric pressed firmly against his side.
The head of security was a man named Marcus, someone who had worked for the family for ten years.
She remembered Marcus bringing her a coffee just yesterday, asking harmless questions about her spreadsheets.
Declan shifted his weight, wincing as fresh pain tore through his battered abdomen.
He explained that Marcus had been bought by a rival syndicate looking to absorb the Gallagher territory.
Norah realized that the waste management budget she had been organizing was actually a money-laundering front.
Marcus had wanted those specific numbers approved tonight so he could drain the accounts before the assassination.
She had been the unwitting pawn holding the keys to three million stolen dollars.
Declan reached out and gently wrapped his large, bloodstained hand over her trembling fingers.
He told her she was remarkably brave for an accountant who was completely out of her depth.
Norah swallowed hard, forcing herself to focus on the logistics of their survival rather than her fear.
She looked up at the ceiling of the elevator, noticing the faint outline of a service panel.
She asked Declan if they could climb out through the top hatch and scale the maintenance ladder.
Declan shook his head, pointing out that his current physical condition made climbing impossible.
He warned her that Marcus would not just leave them stranded here to slowly suffocate.
The hit squad would manually lower a team down the shaft to finish the job and confirm the kill.
Just as the words left his mouth, a loud metallic clank echoed from directly above their heads.
Norah froze in terror as the sound of heavy boots walking across the roof of the elevator cab reverberated through the metal.
Dust and debris rained down on them from the edges of the ceiling panel.
Declan quietly reached into the back waistband of his trousers and pulled out a matte black handgun.
He checked the magazine with a smooth, practiced motion that betrayed exactly what kind of man he truly was.
He grabbed Norah by the arm and pulled her roughly behind his broad shoulders.
The metal service hatch above them suddenly squealed as someone began prying it open with a crowbar.
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A heavy beam of bright white light cut through the amber darkness, blinding them instantly.
Before Declan could raise his weapon, the long, dark barrel of a suppressed assault rifle poked directly through the opening.
