Chapter 27 - THE PUPPET MASTER’S GAMBIT
A heavy steel security grate slammed down behind them, sealing the blast door shut with deafening finality. At the same instant, the reinforced double doors on the opposite side of the chamber swung wide, revealing an observation platform perched above a flooded dry dock.
Standing on the platform, flanked by six heavily armed private contractors, was Julian Sterling.
He looked disheveled compared to his usual bespoke elegance—his designer collar was open, his dark hair wild, and a crazed, manic gleam danced in his eyes. In his right hand, he held a sleek remote detonator.
“Did you honestly think I didn't know about Daniel Bennett’s little coastal drainage pipe?” Julian laughed, a high, fractured sound that bounced off the wet concrete. “Daniel built this entire facility for my family thirty years ago! I let you crawl through that filthy pipe, Vincent, because I wanted all of you in one room.”
Vincent stepped in front of Elena and Grace, shielding them entirely with his broad frame, his weapon aimed squarely at Julian’s forehead.
“Let them walk, Julian,” Vincent said, his voice deadly calm. “This is between you and me. Let my wife take my daughter to the boat, and I will stay here and let you have your fight.”
“My fight?” Julian sneered, stepping up to the metal railing. “I don't want a fistfight with you, Moretti! I want total, absolute ruin! I want the Commission to watch your entire empire burn to ashes!”
Julian held up the detonator, pressing a thumb against the safety toggle.
“This entire battery is rigged with five hundred pounds of C-4,” Julian whispered venomously. “The moment I release this dead-man switch, the cliffside collapses into the Atlantic. You, your precious wife, and that little bastard child will be buried under three hundred feet of stone.”
“Then you die too, Julian,” Elena yelled from behind Vincent, holding Grace tightly to her chest. “You blow this place, you drown with us!”
“Oh, Elena, my sweet, foolish cousin,” Julian smiled, a terrifying, empty grin. “Look down into the dock.”
Below the platform, floating in the dark sea pool, was a high-speed military submersible, its hatch wide open and its engine humming softly.
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“I have my ticket out,” Julian said, raising his gun with his left hand, aiming it straight at Grace. “Now, Vincent. On your knees. Or I shoot the child right in front of you before I bring the roof down.”
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