Chapter 10 - Ashes of the Dynasty
Before I could process the devastating revelation of my own heritage, the heavy steel fire door at the end of the mechanical corridor was kicked open with a thunderous crack.
I scooped Maya into my arms and raised the handgun Julian had given me, stepping in front of Victoria. My finger rested firmly on the trigger, every instinct screaming at me to shoot.
“Hold your fire! Elena, stand down!”
A familiar, breathless voice called out from the darkness. Out of the shadows emerged Julian, his coat torn, his left arm dripping crimson where a bullet had grazed his bicep, but his silver eyes burning with life. Flanking him were four heavily armed men wearing gray tactical uniforms with the crest of the Sterling Private Security Vanguard.
“Julian!” Maya sobbed.
Julian crossed the room in three strides, dropping to his knees and sweeping both Maya and me into his arms. The scent of gunpowder and cold rain clung to his skin, but his embrace was the safest fortress on earth.
“I told you I would find you,” he breathed against my hair, his chest heaving. “Are you hurt? Did they touch you?”
“We’re okay,” I whispered, clinging to him tightly, feeling his heartbeat thumping against my cheek. “Julian, your mother… she told me everything.”
Julian’s eyes flicked to Victoria, who sat weeping in the shadows, unable to meet her younger son’s gaze. A look of deep, ancient sorrow passed over Julian’s face, but he shook his head firmly.
“We will deal with the sins of the past later,” Julian said, rising to his feet and helping me up. “Alexander’s extraction team took heavy casualties, but they got what they came for. Arthur Vance’s terminal successfully transmitted Maya’s biometric signature to a private server hub in upstate New York.”
“What is he going to do with it?” I asked, panic flaring anew.
“He’s going to seize control of the global satellite defense network and auction it off to the highest state bidder,” Julian replied, his voice chillingly steady. “And once he does, he will eliminate anyone who possesses the physical biological override.”
He looked down at Maya.
May you like
“Which means Maya is the only person on earth who can shut Leviathan down permanently.”
***