Chapter 7 - Face to FaceJulian Vance slowly turned his head toward me. His face was pale, scarred from the crash years ago, but his eyes were completely devoid of human emotion.
"Ah, General Ward," Vance chuckled softly, unbothered by the gun aimed at his heart. "The heroic father. I must admit, your daughter's resilience was an unexpected variable. She has her father's iron will."
"Put the gun down and step away from the briefcase," I commanded, my finger tightening on the trigger.
"Or what, General? You shoot me?" Vance smiled sinisterly. "If my heart rate monitor stops, this briefcase automatically broadcasts the payload to overwrite the civilian power grid. Half the eastern seaboard goes dark in thirty seconds. Hospitals, air traffic control, emergency systems... gone."
The air grew deathly quiet, save for Preston’s pathetic whimpering on the ground.
"You think you're the only one who plays chess, Vance?" a sharp voice echoed from the darkness.
Out of the shadow of a nearby container stepped Nadia. She wore a rain-soaked coat, holding a ruggedized military tablet in her hands.
Vance’s smile faltered for the first time. "What is this?"
"I built a counter-frequency three hours ago," Nadia said calmly, stepping alongside me. Her face showed no fear, only absolute, cold authority. "Your dead-man switch relies on the 5G military satellite bridge. I hijacked that bridge ten minutes ago. Your signal isn't going anywhere, Julian."
Vance hastily checked the digital readout on the briefcase. The blinking green light suddenly flashed red: SIGNAL TERMINATED.
"You..." Vance hissed, his calm composure shattering.
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Before he could raise his weapon, a high-caliber round from Major Hart’s sniper rifle shattered the concrete at Vance’s feet. Detective Bennett surged forward, tackling Vance to the ground and disarming him in seconds.
The great "Architect" was pinned to the wet pavement, weeping in rage as tactical officers swarmed the dock.
