Chapter 7 - Into the Dark
The warehouse district was completely dead at 1:15 AM.
The storm had knocked out several streetlights along the coastal road, leaving the rusted industrial blocks shrouded in pitch blackness. Huge waves pounded against the wooden pylons of the nearby piers, the roar of the ocean drowning out the sound of our approaching vehicles.
Wendy’s SUV pulled into the rear alley behind the brick building, turning off its lights immediately.
I parked the Range Rover two blocks back. Joining Marcus and six heavily armed operators dressed in black tactical gear with suppressed carbines, we moved on foot through the shadows of the rusted freight cars.
"Sniper team is in position on the water tower," Marcus whispered, adjusting his night-vision goggles. "They have thermal optics focused on the second-story windows. We have five targets inside: Richard Vance, Wendy Vance, two Swiss medical technicians, and one armed courier."
"Where is Fiona?" I whispered, my voice tight with terror.
Marcus checked his handheld tactical screen. "Thermal camera shows a small heat signature laid out on an operating table in the central room. She’s alive, Julian. Breathing is stable."
A wave of intense relief hit me, followed immediately by an icy, focused clarity.
"Entry plan?" I asked.
"The building has two exits," Marcus detailed, pointing to a digital blueprint of the structure on his wrist monitor. "The main steel door at the rear loading dock and a emergency fire exit on the east side facing the water. Alpha team will blow the hinges on the main steel door with thermal charges. Bravo team will breach the fire door simultaneously. We flashbang the central surgical suite, secure Fiona first, and neutralize any threat."
"I go with Alpha," I said, pulling a black tactical pistol from a holster Marcus had provided me. "I’m the first one through that door."
Marcus looked at me for a second, seeing the absolute refusal in my eyes, and nodded once. "Stay behind my shield. Shoot only if target draws a weapon. Let my guys handle the heavy physical breach."
We crept up the slippery gravel alley, taking positions along the brick wall of the warehouse. The rain poured down off the metal gutters in thick sheets, soaking us to the skin.
Inside, through the high wire-mesh vent, I could hear voices echoing off the concrete walls.
"...sterilization complete," a man speaking with a thick German accent announced. "Bring the child in."
"She’s quieted down," Wendy’s voice answered. "The sedative I gave her will keep her under for another two hours. Make sure you clear the marrow channels quickly. We need to be on the road to the airport before three."
"Don't tell my medical staff how to work, Mrs. Vance," the German doctor snapped back coldly. "We paid five million dollars for this biological material. We will take our time to ensure maximum cell viability. Richard, hold the restraint straps."
"With pleasure," Richard’s raspy voice came through the vent. "Let's finish this so I can finally leave this miserable country."
Hearing Richard speak about my daughter as if she were a piece of meat tore away the last shred of my hesitation.
I looked at Marcus and nodded.
Marcus raised three fingers.
Three.
Two.
One.
He slammed his hand down.
May you like
BOOM!
A blinding flash of white fire and a deafening explosion shattered the quiet of the industrial district as the thermal charges blew the steel door off its frame, sending the two-hundred-pound metal slab flying into the interior hallway.
