Page 48 of Hunter's Game
“Handle it.” Aleksander didn’t look away from the screen. “Well?”
“Almost there.” Eden’s fingers flew across the keyboard. “The bonds were moved through a series of offshore accounts. It takes time to—”
An explosion rocked the building.
Twenty-eight. Twenty-seven. Twenty-six.
“Sir!” Another guard. “Multiple breaches! They’re coming from all sides!”
Now Aleksander did look away, barking orders into a radio. Eden kept typing, implementing the final sequence.
Fifteen. Fourteen. Thirteen.
“It’s the Blind Jacks!” someone shouted. “They’ve got backup from—”
Another explosion cut him off. Closer this time.
Eight. Seven. Six.
“Step away from the computer.” Aleksander’s gun pressed against her head. “Now.”
Eden smiled. “Too late.”
Zero.
Every screen in the room lit up with the same message: PROTOCOL OMEGA INITIATED.
Then everything went dark.
The backup generator kicked in almost immediately, but those few seconds of darkness were all she needed. Eden drove an elbow back into Aleksander’s solar plexus, using his own gun arm as leverage to flip him over her shoulder. His weapon clattered away as more explosions rocked the building.
She didn’t waste time with a fight. The guards were already rushing back in, and she could hear gunfire getting closer. Instead, she dove for the ventilation duct she’d spotted earlier.
“Find her!” Aleksander’s rage followed her into the darkness. “And kill anyone who tries to breach this building!”
Eden army-crawled through the duct, counting turns. Left, right, straight for twenty feet, then... There. The maintenance access she’d memorized from the blueprints her father had given her.
Amazing how helpful a man could be when he thought he was betraying you to save his own skin.
She dropped into a narrow corridor just as another explosion hit, this one close enough to feel the heat. Through the walls, she heard thedistinctive sound of motorcycle engines and automatic weapons.
Her earpiece crackled to life right on schedule.
“Package is moving according to plan,” Hunter’s voice was the best thing she’d heard in hours. “Team two is in position for file extraction.”
“Good,” she replied, already running toward the rendezvous point. “Stick to the timeline. Primary objective is the files.”
“Eden—” his tone carried concern rather than confusion.
“The files are the priority,” she cut him off, knowing he was about to argue about her safety. “Everything we need to take down their entire operation is in that room. Including proof of who really killed my mother.”
A pause. Then, “Your distraction worked perfectly. They never suspected you wanted to be brought here.”
“The best way into a fortress is to be invited.” She found the maintenance door she needed. “Step one complete. Now for step two.”
“Just maintain the timeline we agreed on.” His voice was tight with what she recognized as protective concern rather than anger. “Darkness has the extraction team ready at the secondary point.”
“Affirmative. We’re on schedule.”
