Chapter 7 - THE SIEGE OF STERLING ESTATESThe storm outside reached a deafening crescendo as sheets of rain lashed against the reinforced glass of the master suite. Below on the cobblestone driveway, the blinding headlights of three black armored SUVs cut through the darkness, their heavy tires crunching over the manicured flower beds.
"They're breaching the main gates," Captain Sarah shouted into her tactical radio, her eyes fixed on the perimeter security monitors. "All units hold your positions! Let them commit!"
Inside the bedroom, Julian let out a weak, desperate smirk from where he sat cindered against the bookshelf. "You think a few state troopers can stop the board's enforcement division? Those men down there aren't corporate lawyers, Viktor. They're military contractors. You're walking into a slaughterhouse."
Viktor didn't even glance down at him. He walked over to the reinforced blast shield covering the balcony door, peered through the heavy steel slats, and watched as heavily armed men in black tactical gear poured out of the SUVs, weapons raised, moving with military precision toward the front entrance.
"Sarah," Viktor called out calmly without turning around. "How many men did you bring?"
"Twelve state tactical officers downstairs, plus our sniper team positioned on the ridge behind the greenhouse," Sarah replied, checking the magazine of her assault rifle.
"Not enough," Viktor said smoothly. "Call in the federal reserve unit. Tell them the Shadow Board's enforcement arm just walked into an active federal sting operation."
Samuel Reed stood by the desk, his fingers flying across the terminal as he encrypted the final files of the Shadow Board's archive and transmitted them directly to the Department of Justice and Interpol. "Transmission complete. The entire network is locked down globally. Every asset they own has been seized by the federal government."
Suddenly, the heavy oak doors of the master bedroom rattled violently.
BOOM.
A tactical breaching charge blew the door locks off their hinges with a deafening roar of splintering wood and smoke. Through the billowing white haze, three masked operatives in black combat gear surged into the room, their assault rifles raised and aimed directly at Viktor and Sarah.
"Drop your weapons!" the lead operative barked, his voice distorted by a heavy tactical modulator.
Before they could even squeeze their triggers, Viktor moved with blurring speed. He dropped flat onto the hardwood floor, sweeping his leg in a wide arc and taking out the lead operative's knees. The man crashed down hard, his rifle clattering across the floor.
Captain Sarah and her tactical team opened fire with non-lethal suppression rounds, filling the room with a flurry of high-velocity rubber projectiles and disorrienting flash-bangs.
BANG! FLASH!
The blinding white light and thunderous roar swallowed the room. The remaining two operatives stumbled backward, disoriented and gasping for air, before Sarah's officers swarmed them, slamming them face-first onto the carpet and securing heavy steel cuffs around their wrists.
Within forty seconds, the assault was completely neutralized.
Viktor stood up, brushing a speck of dust off his trench coat, and looked down at the captured operatives. "Tell your employers their services have been terminated."
He turned back toward the bed. Evelyn was watching the entire scene unfold with an expression of supreme, unshakeable calm. Her eye-tracking cursor moved across the screen one more time.
May you like
“Bring... them... all... to... the... courtroom,” the computer synthesized her voice, steady and resonant.
Viktor walked over, placed his hand gently on the edge of the medical bed, and smiled. "As you wish, Evelyn. Tomorrow, the whole world watches them fall."
