CHAPTER 8 – The Man Called Him “Grandson”… Then Took a Bullet
The countdown echoed through the underground bunker.
"Self-destruct in five minutes..."
Red emergency lights flashed across the walls.
Smoke slowly filled the chamber.
No one moved.
No one even breathed.
Every pair of eyes remained fixed on the old man standing beneath the Harrington crest.
Victor Ashford stared at him in horror.
"No..."
"I watched you die."
The old man smiled.
"You watched a funeral."
"You never saw the body."
A ripple of disbelief swept through the room.
Margaret covered her mouth.
Tears streamed down her face.
"William..."
"My God..."
"It really is you."
The old man nodded.
For twenty-five years...
The founder of the Harrington Empire had lived in complete secrecy.
He had disappeared on purpose.
Not because he was afraid...
But because he was hunting the people who had betrayed his family from the inside.
William slowly turned toward Ethan.
"I've waited half my life to meet you."
Ethan's voice cracked.
"You... called me your grandson."
William placed a gentle hand on Ethan's shoulder.
"Blood doesn't make a family."
"Choices do."
"I chose you."
Victor suddenly burst into laughter.
"You still don't understand."
He raised a small black device.
"I already won."
He pressed the button.
Across the bunker...
Steel vaults burst open.
Inside them stood dozens of armed mercenaries dressed in tactical gear.
Laser sights covered Ethan, Lily, Margaret, and William.
Victor smirked.
"You walked into my trap."
William remained calm.
"I expected that."
He tapped the silver cane once against the floor.
A hidden wall exploded outward.
Elite security officers rushed into the chamber from a secret tunnel.
Gunfire erupted.
The bunker became a battlefield.
Glass shattered.
Concrete cracked.
People screamed as bullets ricocheted through the vault.
Lily pulled Ethan behind a pillar.
Margaret helped frightened employees escape through an emergency passage.
Victor disappeared into the smoke.
William chased after him.
"Ethan!"
William shouted.
"No matter what happens..."
"Never let Victor reach the control room!"
Ethan nodded and sprinted after them.
Deep inside the bunker...
Victor reached a massive steel door marked:
PROJECT PHOENIX – CORE LAB
He scanned his fingerprint.
The door slowly opened.
Rows of advanced medical pods illuminated the room.
Inside each transparent capsule...
A child was sleeping.
Some looked no older than eight.
Others were teenagers.
Every capsule displayed the same status.
ACTIVE
Ethan froze.
"What... is this?"
Victor smiled without turning around.
"You thought you were the only survivor."
"No, Ethan..."
"You were only..."
Subject Number Twenty-Seven.
Before Ethan could process the words—
A gunshot echoed through the laboratory.
William staggered forward.
A dark stain spread across his white shirt.
He had taken the bullet...
Meant for Ethan.
As he collapsed into Ethan's arms, William whispered with his final strength:
"Destroy... the last file..."
"If the world learns... who you really are..."
"...they'll never stop hunting you."
William closed his eyes.
The monitor beside one of the capsules suddenly beeped.
Then another.
Then another.
One by one...
Every child inside the laboratory slowly opened their eyes.
And every single one of them...
May you like
Looked exactly like Ethan.
TO BE CONTINUED...
