Chapter 3 - The Blood on the FloorThe movement was too fast for the human eye to track.
One second, the massive beast was pacing the perimeter; the next, it was a blur of muscle, fur, and raw kinetic energy. It didn't aim for K19’s throat or chest. With terrifying calculation, the dog slammed its heavy shoulder directly into K19’s right knee, driving the traitor downward with a sickening crunch of bone and cartilage.
K19 screamed, collapsing into a heap on the mahogany floor, the hidden blade clattering away across the polished wood.
Before he could push himself up, a heavy boot stepped squarely onto his chest, pressing down with unrelenting pressure. It was the boss. He didn't look down at the writhing man beneath him. His gaze remained fixed on the terrified faces of the twelve guards who had nearly pulled their triggers against him minutes before.
—You let fear blind you, the boss said, his voice echoing in the vast, silent room. —You let a whisper in the dark convince you that the man who bled for your families for twenty years would trade you for stones and steel.—
One of the guards — a young man named Tommy, whose older brother the boss had personally put through medical school — dropped his gun entirely. It hit the floor with a heavy thud. Tommy fell to his knees, his hands covering his face as dry, shaking sobs racked his frame.
—We were going to kill you, boss, Tommy choked out, his voice trembling. —I... I had my finger on the hammer. I thought... I thought you brought a civilian into the crossfire just to save your own skin.—
The boss knelt down slowly, careful not to disturb the sleeping infant cradled against his chest. He reached out with one calloused, scarred hand and placed it firmly on the young guard’s shoulder.
—Fear makes monsters out of good men, Tommy, the boss said softly. —Never apologize for protecting what you love. But next time, check your facts before you point a gun at the hand that feeds you.—
Miller, the accountant, stepped closer, kicking K19’s discarded pistol away into the shadows. —The outer perimeter is secure, boss. The men K19 hired to ambush the warehouse are locked out of the system. But we have a bigger problem. The shipment wasn't just diamonds. It was a decoy.—
The boss’s eyes narrowed. —Explain.—
—The diamonds we lost at the docks? They were insured glass, Miller said, his face grim. —The real cargo wasn't gems. It was data. Hard drives containing the identities of every deep-cover informant we have inside federal law enforcement. And K19 didn't just steal them to sell. He traded them.—
—Traded them to whom?—
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Before Miller could answer, the heavy steel doors at the entrance of the club shuddered under a massive, concussive blast.
BOOM.
