Chapter 5: The Assassins in White Coats
The emergency room was swallowed by darkness.
Only the red emergency lights flickered across the walls.
Inside Operating Room One, surgeons froze as every monitor went black.
"We've lost his heartbeat monitor!"
"Flashlights! NOW!"
Before anyone could react...
The operating room door slowly creaked open.
Three paramedics rushed inside, wearing masks and pushing emergency equipment.
The lead surgeon frowned.
"I didn't call for another team."
The tallest paramedic calmly replied,
"Special cardiac response."
His voice sounded wrong.
Too cold.
Too rehearsed.
Something wasn't right.
The young intern recognized it first.
She glanced down.
The men weren't wearing hospital-issued shoes.
Heavy black tactical boots.
Her heart skipped.
"Doctor..."
She whispered.
"I don't think they're—"
The tallest man suddenly pulled a syringe from his pocket.
"Everybody on the floor!"
The room exploded into panic.
One nurse screamed.
Another tried to hit the emergency alarm before being shoved aside.
The lead surgeon stepped between the stranger and Jonathan Hayes.
"If you want him..."
"You'll have to go through me."
Without hesitation, the masked man struck him across the face.
The surgeon collapsed.
The assassin walked toward Jonathan's unconscious body.
"This ends tonight."
He raised the syringe...
...when the young intern grabbed a stainless-steel tray and slammed it into his arm.
The syringe flew across the room.
Chaos erupted.
Doctors fought alongside nurses.
Medical carts crashed into the walls.
Outside, federal agents heard the noise.
"GO! GO! GO!"
They rammed through the operating room doors.
Gunfire wasn't necessary.
The assassins weren't trying to win.
They were trying to escape.
Smoke grenades filled the room.
Seconds later...
The three fake paramedics vanished.
Only one thing remained on the floor.
A silver coin engraved with a black phoenix.
The investigator picked it up.
His face turned pale.
"No..."
"I haven't seen this symbol in twenty years."
Eleanor stepped closer.
"What is it?"
He looked at her with dread.
May you like
"The Phoenix Circle."
"The organization that destroyed your family."
