Chapter 5 - BLOOD AND BULLETSTime seemed to fracture.
Daniel moved with supernatural speed, shielding Aria with his own body, but before he could fire back, Maya did the unthinkable. With a fierce, primal roar that no one expected from the starving homeless woman, she lunged sideways, slamming her entire weight into a heavy steel fire extinguisher mounted on the wall.
Clang!
She ripped it from its brackets and hurled it with terrifying precision straight at Victoria’s chest. The heavy steel cylinder struck Victoria dead center, knocking the wind out of her with a brutal gasp and sending her weapon clattering across the slick tile floor.
"Bitch!" Victoria screamed, stumbling backward against the wall. But Marcus was already there, his gun pressed firmly against the center of her forehead.
"Move an inch," Marcus murmured coldly, "and I’ll turn your brain into paint."
Daniel slowly straightened up, his heart hammering against his ribs. He looked down at Maya, who was breathing heavily, her knuckles bleeding from the impact with the metal bracket. There was a fierce, commanding aura radiating from her now—a raw, untamed power that bore an uncanny resemblance to Elena in her prime.
"You're bleeding," Daniel said, his voice unusually soft as he stepped closer to her.
"I've had worse," Maya panted, wiping her hand on her jeans. She looked past him at Victoria, who was glaring at them with pure, unadulterated hatred.
"You think you’ve won?" Victoria laughed hysterically, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth. "Check your phone, Daniel. Check your secure network. While you were playing hero in this shithole hospital, my associates are liquidating every single asset you own. Your accounts are frozen. Your docks are burning. The commission is voting you out by midnight."
Daniel didn't even blink. He pulled out his encrypted satellite phone, tapped the screen once, and pressed it to his ear.
"Leo," Daniel spoke calmly, his eyes never leaving Victoria's pale face. "Execute Protocol Zero."
May you like
Victoria’s smile faltered. "What... what is Protocol Zero?"
"It means you assumed I kept all my eggs in one basket," Daniel replied with a chilling, predatory grin. "The commission answers to me, Victoria. Not my money. Not my docks. My bloodline. And now that I have both my heirs... and the woman who protects them... your usefulness has officially expired."
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