Chapter 7 - Breach"Boss!"
The dining room doors slammed open, and the squad leader from the diner rushed in, his tactical rifle raised, blood staining the shoulder of his vest.
"Vance's men?" Julian asked, his voice instantly shifting from gentle confidant to apex predator. The transition was terrifying to witness.
"It’s not just Vance," the leader panted. "It’s a full-scale assault. They bypassed the outer perimeter using a municipal maintenance truck rigged with explosives. They're breaching the main courtyard right now!"
Julian stood up so fast his chair scraped backward against the hardwood floor. He locked eyes with Mara.
"Stay here. Do not move from this room," Julian ordered, his tone absolute.
"Julian, no," Mara stood up, grabbing his arm. "If they're here for you—"
"They're here to finish what they started at the diner," Julian interrupted, his dark eyes burning. He turned to his squad leader. "Move Eli and Mara to the subterranean bunker beneath the vault. Use the reinforced service tunnel."
"Understood, Boss."
"I'm not hiding," Mara said, her jaw setting in that stubborn South Philly defiance that had kept her alive through poverty, grief, and dead-end jobs. "I’m not sitting in a dark hole while you fight a war outside."
Julian stared at her for a fraction of a second, a strange, grim pride flashing across his features.
"Then stay behind me," he said.
He reached into his holster, pulling out a sleek, suppressed 9mm pistol, checking the magazine with practiced efficiency, and handed it handle-first to Mara.
She stared at the weapon in shock. "I... I don't know how to shoot this."
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"Point, pull the trigger, and don't hesitate," Julian said, his voice deadly calm. "If anyone who isn't wearing our insignia comes through that door, you fire."
Outside the glass doors, the sound of automatic gunfire erupted, echoing through the halls of the compound like thunder. Glass shattered in the lobby. The war had come to their doorstep.
