Chapter 4 - The Boardroom Assassin
The woman from the store stepped forward, a suppressed submachine gun resting casually against her hip.
She was no longer wearing the simple, unassuming clothes of a weekend shopper.
She wore sleek, black tactical gear and moved with the terrifying precision of a trained killer.
"Hello, Arthur," the woman said, her voice dripping with cold, calculated amusement.
Arthur froze entirely, his hands slowly rising away from his own weapon.
"Elena," he breathed, recognizing her instantly.
"I should have known the board would send their best cleaner."
Elena smiled, a chilling expression that did not reach her dead eyes.
"You really made a mess of things, Arthur."
"Transferring the Vanguard master codes to a little girl's trust fund was a bold move."
"But it was ultimately very stupid."
She gestured with her weapon toward the back seat where Lily was sleeping.
"Hand over the mother and the child, and I promise your death will be relatively quick."
I leaned over the center console, desperately shielding Lily with my own body.
"How did you find us so fast?" I demanded, my voice shaking with pure terror.
Elena chuckled softly, tapping the side of her sleek earpiece.
"I didn't find you, honey."
"I never lost you."
"I slipped a micro-tracker into your daughter's backpack when you weren't looking at the store."
My stomach plummeted as I realized the entire encounter at the store had been orchestrated.
Arthur hadn't just stumbled upon us by accident.
Elena had been tracking him the entire time, waiting for him to make a desperate move.
"You orchestrated the hostile takeover," Arthur accused Elena, his eyes narrowing dangerously.
"You wanted the AI codes for yourself, not the board."
Elena shrugged unapologetically.
"The board is run by old, unimaginative fools."
"I have a buyer in Eastern Europe willing to pay ten billion dollars for the Vanguard system."
She raised her weapon and aimed it directly at my head.
"Now, step out of the car, or I will paint the interior with her."
Arthur slowly opened his door, keeping his hands perfectly visible in the dim light.
He stepped out, placing himself firmly between Elena and the car.
"Take me," Arthur bargained desperately.
"I can bypass the biometric locks on the trust fund without hurting them."
Elena sighed dramatically, shaking her head.
"Why do men always try to negotiate when they have absolutely no leverage?"
She nodded to one of her heavily armed mercenaries.
The mercenary raised his rifle and fired a single shot.
It didn't hit Arthur.
It hit the concrete ceiling directly above Elena's tactical team.
A massive, deafening explosion rocked the underground garage.
Concrete debris and blinding dust rained down on Elena and her men, throwing them violently to the ground.
Arthur didn't hesitate for a single second.
He dove back into the driver's seat, slammed the car into reverse, and floored the accelerator.
We tore out of the dust cloud just as Elena began firing blindly through the chaos.
Bullets shattered our back window, missing Lily by mere inches.
"Who shot the ceiling?" I screamed over the roaring engine as we hit the street level.
Arthur checked the rearview mirror, his face pale and completely covered in sweat.
"That wasn't one of my loyal men," Arthur confessed quietly.
"That was someone else entirely."
Suddenly, my cell phone buzzed loudly in the cup holder.
May you like
It was a text message from an unknown number.
You're welcome. Bring the girl to Pier 34, or the next explosion will be under your car.
