Chapter 7 - The Panic and The Plunge.
David Chen's voice trembled with undeniable fear.
He paced frantically behind the bank of glowing security monitors.
The four armed guards barely paid him any attention.
They were too busy sipping stale coffee and watching the static camera feeds.
"You don't understand what Thomas is capable of!"
David yelled, slamming his hand onto the metal desk.
"He built this entire system from scratch."
"He knows every single blind spot we have."
The lead guard sighed heavily and leaned back in his leather chair.
"Relax, Mr. Chen."
The guard said with a dismissive smirk.
"We have forty armed men patrolling the perimeter."
"If he even steps foot on the grass, we will turn him into Swiss cheese."
Up in the dark ventilation shaft, Thomas adjusted his grip.
He lined up his boots perfectly with the edges of the internal iron vent cover.
He didn't have time for a prolonged firefight.
He needed absolute, brutal efficiency.
Thomas took one final, silent breath.
He kicked downward with shattering force.
The heavy iron cover tore free from its mounting screws.
It crashed down directly onto the lead guard's desk, smashing the coffee mugs.
Before the guards could even react to the deafening noise, Thomas dropped from the ceiling.
He landed perfectly in the center of the room.
He moved like a blur of dark violence.
The first guard reached wildly for his sidearm.
Thomas drove his elbow straight into the man's temple.
The guard’s eyes rolled back, and he collapsed instantly to the floor.
The second guard tried to stand up from his rolling chair.
Thomas grabbed the back of the heavy chair and violently yanked it backward.
The man's head slammed into the concrete floor with a sickening crack.
Two guards left.
They finally managed to draw their weapons.
"Shoot him!"
David Chen screamed, scrambling backward into a corner.
Thomas didn't hesitate for a microsecond.
He kicked the metal desk with all his leg strength.
The heavy desk slid rapidly across the polished floor and pinned the third guard against the wall.
The fourth guard leveled his rifle right at Thomas's chest.
Thomas dropped into a low crouch, sweeping the man's legs out from under him.
As the guard fell, Thomas delivered a precise, crushing strike to the man's jaw.
The room fell into absolute, deafening silence.
It had taken exactly six seconds.
Four highly trained mercenaries were unconscious on the floor.
Thomas slowly stood up, breathing heavily.
He turned his cold, lifeless eyes toward the corner of the room.
David was curled up in a pathetic ball, shaking uncontrollably.
"Please, Tom."
David sobbed, holding his hands up in defense.
"They made me do it."
"Marcus said he would ruin my career if I didn't help him."
Thomas walked slowly toward his former best friend.
He didn't say a word.
The silence was far more terrifying than any threat.
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!"
David pleaded, tears streaming down his pale face.
"I didn't know they were going to hurt the kids."
Thomas reached down and grabbed David by the collar of his expensive designer suit.
He lifted the cowardly engineer effortlessly to his feet.
He slammed David hard against the concrete wall.
"You knew exactly what Marcus was."
Thomas whispered, his voice trembling with contained rage.
"You sold out my children for a corner office."
David squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the fatal blow.
"Please don't kill me."
David whimpered.
Thomas stared at the man who had been the best man at his wedding.
He felt nothing but pure, absolute disgust.
"I don't have time to kill you."
Thomas said coldly.
He delivered a sharp, calculated punch straight to David's gut.
David gasped for air and crumpled into a heap on the floor.
Thomas knelt down and quickly searched David's pockets.
He found the master access keycard and a secure encrypted tablet.
He stood up and walked over to the main security terminal.
He swiped David's master card and bypassed the remaining firewalls in seconds.
He brought up the internal camera feeds for the entire estate.
He selected the network and initiated a continuous loop protocol.
Every screen in the mansion would now show thirty minutes of peaceful, empty hallways.
The security team was now completely blind.
Next, he located the electronic lock for the third-floor attic.
He typed in a swift override command.
The screen flashed bright green.
Attic Door: UNLOCKED.
Thomas grabbed a loaded sidearm from one of the unconscious guards.
He checked the magazine and slid the weapon into his tactical belt.
He looked back at David, who was groaning weakly on the floor.
"If you warn them, I will come back for you."
Thomas promised into the quiet room.
May you like
He turned and walked out the heavy door, heading straight for the main stairwell.
The countdown to midnight was still ticking.
