Chapter 9 - The Siege of Sterling Tower
The heavy steel doors of the subterranean corridor didn't just open; they blew inward in a shower of sparks and pulverized concrete.
A flashbang detonated down the hall, filling the corridor with a blinding white glare and a deafening concussive roar. Through the acrid white smoke, four heavily armed operatives in matte-black tactical gear and night-vision goggles poured into the hallway, their suppressed assault rifles raised and sweeping the sector with ruthless efficiency.
Apex Security hit squads. They weren't rent-a-cops or corporate goons; these were professional contractors, veterans of black-ops campaigns who left no witnesses behind.
"Hold your fire until they clear the threshold," I whispered, pressing my back flat against the concrete pillar beside the server room entrance.
Harrison was crouched on the opposite side, his pistol raised, his breathing slow and measured. He didn't look like a billionaire heir anymore; he looked like the Marine captain who had once led my squad through the harshest mountains in the Middle East.
The first operative stepped through the blown-out doorway, his weapon sweeping toward the server racks.
"Now," I breathed.
Two suppressed shots cracked through the subterranean corridor in unison. The lead operative dropped instantly, taking a round to the ceramic plate of his vest and another to the thigh, collapsing in a heap of black tactical webbing.
"Contact left!" shouted the second operative, blind-firing a burst of submachine gun rounds that chewed up the concrete pillars inches above our heads, sending a shower of gray dust raining down onto our shoulders.
"Suppressing fire!" Harrison yelled, stepping out from behind his pillar and putting three rapid rounds down the hallway, forcing the remaining three contractors to scatter and take cover behind the overturned steel desks in the corridor.
I vaulted over a server rack, sliding across the polished floor and coming up behind a concrete partition. I drew a bead on the third operative as he tried to flank Harrison’s position. A single, clean shot caught his shoulder plate, spinning him around and dropping him to the floor.
"Two down, two moving fast!" Miller’s voice crackled through our comms-links from the security control room upstairs. "They're attempting to bypass the server room and access the primary mainframe terminal!"
"Not on my floor," I growled, pushing off the partition and sprinting down the corridor toward the main lobby intersection.
Harrison was right behind me, his movements fluid and deadly. As we rounded the corner, the remaining two Apex operatives were laying heavy suppressive fire against the reinforced glass of the server room mainframe.
"Drop your weapons!" Harrison’s voice boomed down the corridor, absolute and unforgiving.
The lead contractor spun around, his assault rifle raised, but before he could squeeze the trigger, I stepped out from the shadow of the corridor and put a round straight through the barrel of his weapon, shattering the metal casing in a shower of sparks.
Harrison didn't hesitate. He closed the distance in two strides, delivering a brutal, textbook butt-stroke with the pistol grip to the contractor’s temple, dropping him unconscious to the floor. The final operative threw his hands up, dropping his rifle to the concrete with a loud, metallic clatter.
"Clear," I said, lowering my sidearm, though my ribs throbbed a sharp reminder of my recent injuries.
Harrison exhaled slowly, sliding his pistol back into its holster. He looked down at the unconscious men scattered across the corridor, then turned his gaze to me, a fierce, approving smile breaking through the tension on his face.
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"You still move like lightning, Captain Vance," Harrison said, wiping a streak of soot from his cheek.
"And you still shoot like a Marine, Commander Sterling," I replied, a genuine smile finally reaching my eyes. "Looks like the secret's out."
