Chapter 3 - The Billionaire's Extraction
The world turned into a chaotic blur of screaming metal, shattered glass, and zero gravity.
The explosion tore through the undercarriage of the train, throwing the massive steel cars off the rails. Graham gripped the seat legs with white-knuckled intensity as the carriage tipped sideways, sliding down a steep embankment into the snowy ravine below.
Passengers were thrown across the cabin like ragdolls. The mercenaries lost their footing, crashing heavily against the windows as the train finally came to a grinding, groaning halt on its side.
Thick, acrid smoke filled the air.
Graham coughed violently, rubbing the dust from his eyes. "Toby! June!"
"Daddy!" Toby cried out. He was pinned under a dislodged seat cushion, but he was breathing. June was crying, covered in soot but miraculously uninjured. Graham frantically pulled Toby free, checking them both for broken bones.
"We have to go. Now!" Graham muttered.
He grabbed the brown cloth bag, slinging it over his shoulder, and began climbing the tilted rows of seats toward the shattered windows that now served as the roof.
Through the haze of smoke, he saw one of the tactical men groaning, trying to reach for his dropped rifle. Graham didn't hesitate. He kicked the rifle out of reach and stomped hard on the man's wrist, securing the weapon for himself. He was no longer just a businessman; he was a man defending his blood.
"Mister... help..."
A faint cry came from the front of the overturned car.
Graham looked over. Clara was trapped. A heavy steel luggage partition had collapsed over her lower body, pinning her to the floor. The smoke was thickening, turning into a toxic black cloud.
"Daddy, save the music girl!" June begged, tears streaming down her face.
Graham looked at his children, then at the girl who carried his dead wife's journal. He hurried down the tilted cabin, leveraging his weight against the steel partition. With a roar of pure, adrenaline-fueled strength, he lifted the metal frame just enough for Clara to wiggle free.
She collapsed into his arms, coughing violently. She was burning hot to the touch.
"Thank you," she whispered, her blue eyes locked onto his. "Your wife... Eleanor... she told me you would come."
"Where is she, Clara? Tell me where she is!" Graham demanded, pulling her up.
"The mountain," Clara gasped, pointing out the shattered window toward the massive, snow-capped peak rising behind the forest. "The Blackwood Facility. They are keeping her in the dark. We have to run, the bad men aren't alone."
Suddenly, headlights cut through the dense trees outside.
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Three black armored SUVs were tearing through the wilderness, heading straight for the crash site. Marcus Vance’s extraction team had arrived to clean up the mess.
Graham slung Clara onto his back alongside the bag, grabbed Toby and June by their hands, and leaped out of the shattered train window into the freezing darkness of the forest just as the first flashlight beams struck the wreckage behind them.
