Chapter 7 - The Fire RisesOutside the titanium vault, the muffled sounds of an explosion shook the entire sub-basement.
The floor trembled beneath their feet, sending dust raining down from the concrete ceiling.
"They brought explosives," Claire said, her eyes widening in panic as she grabbed Adrian's sleeve. "They're going to breach the door!"
"Not with C4," Adrian said calmly, his tactical mindset instantly clicking back into place. He pulled a secure satellite phone from his pocket, tapping a single emergency code onto the screen. "That was a directional breaching charge. They're trying to blow the hinges, but the hinges are reinforced with tungsten-carbide. It’ll take them at least twenty minutes."
"Twenty minutes is an eternity!"
"Which is why we aren't waiting for them to finish," Adrian said, walking over to the back wall of the vault. He pressed his hand against an innocuous steel panel behind the filing cabinets. A biometric scanner blinked green. BEEP.
A hidden door swung open silently, revealing a narrow, concrete escape tunnel lit by emergency red guide lights.
"Where does this go?" Claire asked, staring down the dark, descending corridor.
"Straight to the Chicago River drainage system," Adrian replied, gesturing for her to go first. "From there, my private launch is waiting at slip fourteen. We’ll be at the North Side safehouse before Marcus even realizes we're gone."
Claire hesitated for a fraction of a second, then stepped into the cool, damp air of the tunnel. Adrian followed closely behind, pulling the heavy steel panel shut behind them just as a deafening roar echoed through the vault—the sound of the outer door finally giving way to explosives.
They sprinted through the labyrinthine tunnels, the sound of rushing water growing louder with every step. The damp air filled their lungs, stinging like ice.
When they finally burst out into the concrete drainage basin overlooking the freezing, dark waters of the Chicago River, a sleek, unmarked motorboat idled against the dock, driven by a man in a black tactical sweater.
"Boss!" the driver yelled over the roar of the river. "We got word! The board has called an emergency quorum at the penthouse! They’re voting to strip your assets tonight!"
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Adrian vaulted onto the boat, extending a strong hand down to pull Claire aboard.
"Let them vote," Adrian said coldly, taking the wheel from the driver and pushing the throttle forward until the boat leaped out into the dark, choppy waters of the river. He turned to Claire, his eyes gleaming with fierce, unstoppable determination. "By sunrise, there won't be a board left to strip."
