Chapter 7 - Breach in the Dark
The piercing shriek of the security alarm cut through the penthouse like a razor. Emergency red lights pulsed rhythmically, painting the minimalist walls in shades of blood and shadow.
Dominic shoved me gently behind a heavy, reinforced marble pillar, his weapon raised, eyes locked on the shadowy entryway of the foyer.
"Stay down," he commanded in a low, lethal whisper. "Don't move, no matter what you hear."
"Dominic—" I started, my heart hammering against my ribs.
"Trust me," he interrupted, his gaze never leaving the dark corridor.
From the stairwell came the muffled sound of a suppressed gunshot, followed by a heavy thud—one of our guards going down. The perimeter had been breached. Whoever was out there had bypassed the biometric locks and scrambled the building's primary power grid.
Footsteps crunched softly on shattered glass just outside the sitting room.
Clack. Clack.
Two dark figures materialized in the dim red glow, clad in tactical gear, suppressors fitted to the ends of their submachine guns. They didn't shout warnings. They swept into the room, their weapons pivoting toward the sofa.
They didn't expect Dominic to be waiting by the marble pillar.
Bang! Bang!
Two rapid gunshots shattered the silence. The first tactical operative dropped instantly, his chest exploding in a red mist as he hit the Persian rug. The second operative spun around, firing blindly into the dark, bullets chipping the marble pillar just inches from my face.
Dominic didn't hesitate. He closed the distance with terrifying speed, slamming the butt of his pistol into the second man’s helmet, sending him crashing backward onto a glass coffee table.
Silence descended once more, save for the rhythmic pulsing of the emergency lights.
Dominic lowered his weapon just an inch, his chest rising and falling slowly as he scanned the doorway. "Rocco! Status!"
A burst of static crackled from the comms earpiece in Dominic's ear.
Boss... main servers are locked out. They used a high-frequency override code. It’s... it’s Vance. He brought professional clean-up crew—
The transmission cut off with a sharp, sickening squeal of feedback.
Dominic cursed under his breath. He turned back toward me, grabbing my arm and pulling me up from behind the pillar. "We have to move. The panic room is down the hall, behind the master study. Go!"
"What about your men?" I asked, my legs shaking as I scrambled to my feet.
"They're handling it," Dominic lied smoothly, though his eyes betrayed the grim reality. The perimeter was compromised, and Vance had outsmarted their security grid.
We sprinted down the dimly lit hallway, the red emergency lights casting long, distorted shadows of our bodies against the walls. Just as we reached the heavy oak doors of the master study, a figure stepped out from the shadows ahead of us, blocking our path.
It wasn't a tactical operative in a helmet.
It was Dr. Harrison Vance.
He was holding a sleek, customized chemical dispersal pistol in one hand, his white lab coat replaced by a dark tactical turtleneck. His glasses reflected the crimson emergency glow, giving his eyes a mad, brilliant shine.
"Well, well, well," Vance said, a cold, mocking smile playing on his lips. "The infamous Dominic Moretti, reduced to running through his own hallways like a rat. And... ah. The nurse."
Dominic instantly raised his weapon, aiming straight for Vance's chest. "End of the line, Harrison. Drop the weapon."
Vance didn't flinch. In fact, he chuckled softly, raising the dispersal pistol just a fraction higher—not at Dominic, but pointing it directly at me.
"Drop my weapon, Dominic? I don't think so," Vance smiled smoothly. "You see, you ruined everything. Sterling was a fool, yes, but he was my fool. He was supposed to quietly eliminate the newborn heir so the board could restructure the hospital syndicate ties in our favor. But this... this insignificant nurse had to play hero."
"You poisoned a newborn baby," Dominic growled, his finger tightening on the trigger. "You and your family are dead men."
"Oh, we're all dead men, Dominic," Vance replied calmly, his eyes locking onto mine with chilling fixation. "That's the beauty of chemistry. It doesn't care about your syndicates, your money, or your guns. A single microgram of my synthetic neurotoxin aerosolized in this hallway, and within ten seconds, both of your nervous systems will shut down permanently."
My breath hitched. My hand instinctively flew to my throat.
Vance's finger twitched toward the trigger of the dispersal pistol.
Time seemed to slow down to a crawl. I saw the muscles in Vance's hand contract. I saw the tiny nozzle of the pistol angle toward my face.
Dominic saw it too.
Instead of firing his own gun, Dominic did something unthinkable. He lunged sideways, throwing his entire body directly in front of me, shielding me with his own chest just as Vance pulled the trigger.
Pfft.
A fine, invisible cloud of sweet-smelling vapor hissed from the dispersal pistol, washing directly over Dominic’s back and shoulders.
"Dominic!" I screamed.
Dominic grunted, a sharp gasp escaping his lips, but he didn't fall. With a roar of pure, unadulterated fury, he lunged forward across the remaining distance, tackling Vance hard against the mahogany bookcase.
The dispersal pistol flew from Vance's hand, clattering loudly across the floor.
Dominic slammed his fist into Vance's jaw once, twice, three times, until the doctor’s head snapped back and he slumped unconscious against the base of the heavy wooden shelves.
Dominic staggered backward, leaning heavily against the wall, his breathing ragged and shallow. The neurotoxin was already working its way into his system.
"Dominic! Look at me!" I cried out, rushing to his side, grabbing his arms to steady him.
His dark eyes were already losing their sharp focus, a heavy, pale sweat breaking out across his forehead. "Claire... get... get to the safe..."
"I'm not leaving you," I choked out, tears finally spilling over my cheeks.
May you like
I grabbed the heavy brass key hanging on his belt loop, dragged him toward the open door of the master study, and hauled him inside just as the sound of heavy boots echoed down the hallway outside.
We were trapped inside the study, and the poison was in Dominic's blood.
