Chapter 11 - A Mother's Courage
Back at The Haven, the bunker was dead quiet.
Arthur was seated at the surveillance station, monitoring the dockyard feeds, while Evelyn sat in the adjoining kitchen, holding a cup of hot chamomile tea. Lily was still fast asleep in the bedroom, clutching the wooden white knight Dominic had given her.
Suddenly, the overhead lights flickered once, twice, and died.
Emergency red auxiliary lights hummed to life, casting eerie crimson shadows across the concrete walls.
"Arthur?" Evelyn called out, setting her tea down, her senses instantly on high alert. "What happened to the power?"
There was no answer.
Evelyn walked into the war room. Her breath caught in her throat.
Arthur lay slumped across the desk, a dart protruding from the side of his neck. He was unconscious, his breathing shallow but stable.
From the central ventilation shaft in the ceiling, the heavy steel grate fell with a loud crash. A tall, sinewy figure dropped gracefully onto the floor—dressed in black tactical gear, wielding a suppressed pistol and a hunting blade.
It was Victor Vance, Vincent’s top personal assassin, known throughout the Chicago underworld as the Ghost.
"Mrs. Carter," Victor whispered, his voice like sandpaper. "Vincent sends his regards. Hand over the girl, and your death will be painless."
Evelyn didn't scream. She didn't freeze. The paralyzing terror that had ruled her life for two years suddenly burned away, replaced by an incandescent, primal fury.
*Nobody touches my daughter.*
Evelyn darted backward behind the reinforced steel server racks. Victor fired two silent rounds, the bullets pinging violently off the metal server cases.
"You can't hide in this vault, Evelyn," Victor mocked, advancing slowly, his boots clicking on the floor. "You're a waitress. You carry plates. You don't know how to survive a wolf."
Evelyn gripped the heavy cast-iron skillet she had taken from the kitchen counter behind her back. She backed toward the fire suppression panel on the wall. David had taught her the schematics of industrial systems when they first met; he had worked maintenance before entering the financial wing of the syndicate.
She slammed her fist down on the emergency halon gas override and yanked the fire extinguisher from its bracket.
A cloud of blinding white chemical powder blasted directly into Victor’s face as he rounded the corner. Victor roared in shock, his vision instantly clouded.
Evelyn swung the heavy skillet with all her strength, smashing it across Victor’s temple with a sickening crack. The assassin stumbled, dropping his pistol.
Before he could recover his blade, Evelyn lunged forward, grabbing the fallen weapon from the floor. She scrambled back, leveling the heavy gun with both hands, exactly as Dominic had shown her during the brief escape from the penthouse.
Victor wiped the blood and powder from his eyes, his blade gleaming under the red emergency lights. He sneered, taking a step toward her. "You don't have the stomach to pull that trigger, girl."
Evelyn’s eyes locked onto his, cold and steady as winter frost.
May you like
"Try me," she whispered.
***