Chapter 17 - The Defense of Cascade Ridge
Before the operatives could reach Nathan, heavy gunfire erupted from the opposite end of the hallway—not from Nathan, but from Sheriff Miller, who had stationed himself at the estate overnight following Nathan’s warning in Seattle.
Miller’s service shotgun boomed through the corridor, buckshot clipping the lead operative's tactical vest and sending him crashing backward down the stairs. The second operative fired wildly in response, punching holes in the wall before Miller returned fire, neutralizing the threat with a clean shot to the shoulder.
"You alright, Nathan?" Miller shouted over the ringing in his ears, pumping his shotgun.
"I'm fine!" Nathan coughed through the smoke, scrambling to his feet. "Where are the others?"
"Two more breached the ground floor near the kitchen! They're heading for the basement panic room!" Miller warned.
Panic spiked in Nathan's chest. Rosa, Lily, and the babies were down there. He sprinted toward the back staircase, ignoring the pain in his muscles, descending two steps at a time until he burst into the lower-level hallway.
Through the glass door of the security corridor, he saw two masked men using an industrial thermal torch to melt the electronic locking mechanism of the steel panic room door. Sparks flew in a brilliant, violent shower.
"Hey!" Nathan roared.
May you like
The two operatives spun around. One raised his rifle, but before he could pull the trigger, Nathan raised his Sig Sauer and fired with absolute, clinical precision—two shots, two center-mass hits. Both men collapsed instantly, their weapons clattering against the concrete floor.
The thermal torch hissed and died, plunging the hallway back into silence.
