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The humming sound of the Boeing 777 engine felt distant, drowned out entirely by the deafening realization pounding inside Nathan Wells’s ears. / Chapter 4 / 8

Chapter 4 - The Strike at MidnightThe punch caught Julian square on the jaw, sending his titanium glasses flying into a puddle of oily rainwater. Julian staggered back, crashing hard against the side of the armored SUV, his mouth bleeding.

"Take him down!" Julian screamed, wiping blood from his lip with the back of a manicured hand.

Four tactical guards rushed forward, converging on Nathan like wolves on a wounded stag. Nathan swung a heavy right hook, dropping the first guard with a sickening crunch, but the sheer numbers overwhelmed him. A heavy boot kicked the back of his knee, buckling his leg, and two men pinned his arms behind his back, slamming him hood-first against the cold metal of the vehicle.

"Pathetic," Julian hissed, straightening his jacket and walking over to grab Nathan by the hair, forcing his head up. "You really thought you could walk back into my city and win? The board voted unanimously this morning. Neurosoft is mine. Your children are wards of the corporate trust. And Catherine... well, Catherine is currently undergoing her final system reboot."

"You bastard..." Nathan choked out, blood dripping from his nose onto the hood.

"Mr. Wells!"

A sharp, clear voice rang out from the top of the jet stairs.

Julian and his guards snapped their heads upward. Standing on the metal landing, completely unfazed by the howling wind, was seven-year-old Lily. Cradled securely in her left arm was baby Ethan, while Emma rested peacefully in a baby carrier strapped across her chest. In her right hand, she held up the glowing silver double-helix pendant.

"Hey, suit-man!" Lily yelled down, her voice echoing across the wide-open tarmac. "You forgot the master key!"

"Shoot her! Tranquilizer dart, now!" Julian roared, pointing a trembling finger at the child.

One of the guards raised a high-pressure pneumatic rifle, aiming straight at Lily.

Nathan let out a feral roar, using every ounce of his adrenaline to break free from the two men holding him. He smashed his elbow backward into the ribs of the guard on his left, spun around, and drove a vicious headbutt into the face of the second guard, dropping them both to the concrete.

"Lily, run!" Nathan screamed, sprinting toward the stairs.

But Lily didn't run.

Instead, with astonishing precision, she tossed the silver double-helix pendant straight down into the air toward Nathan.

The guard with the tranquilizer rifle pivoted and fired. Pfft.

The dart missed Lily by an inch, whizzing past her ear. But down below, Nathan leaped into the air, extending his hand, and caught the silver pendant out of mid-air just as his boots hit the tarmac.

"Got it!" Lily shouted, and instantly ducked back inside the aircraft cabin, slamming the heavy security door shut and engaging the hydraulic deadbolts from the inside.

Julian’s face turned the color of ash. "Break that door down! Use explosive charges if you have to! We have ten minutes before the system locks permanently!"

Nathan gripped the silver pendant in his palm. He pressed his thumb against the microscopic seam. The double helix split open, revealing a glowing blue biometric scanner inside.

Nathan pressed his bloody thumb onto the glass surface.

BEEP.

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Katherine did not cry when she walked into their immaculate suburban home. The silence of the empty house, which usually felt lonely on the nights Reginald claimed to be working late, now felt like a tactical advantage.

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A deep, low-frequency hum vibrated through the entire tarmac. Every single light on the three armored SUVs flickered and died. A digital projection flashed across the night sky from the top of the airport control tower—a massive holographic Neurosoft logo turning blood-red, accompanied by a synthesized voice echoing across the facility:

MASTER OVERRIDE ACCEPTED. WELCOME HOME, MR. WELLS.

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