Chapter 5 - The Ledger of BloodInside the cavernous, echoing shell of the steel foundry, the sound of falling rain was replaced by the clatter of heavy machinery and harsh, taunting laughter.
We moved along the upper catwalking, keeping in the deep shadows cast by the overhead cranes. Below us, in the center of the vast concrete casting floor, sat my brother Leo. He was tied securely to an industrial steel chair, blinking dazedly under the glare of a halogen work light.
Standing directly in front of him was Arthur Vance—a sleek, well-dressed man in an expensive Italian suit that looked entirely out of place amid the grease and rust. Behind Arthur stood eight armed thugs holding submachine guns.
"I'll ask you one more time, Leo," Arthur sneered, crouching down so he was eye-level with my terrified brother. "Where did your sister stash the master decryption drive? Dante’s digital vault won't open without her biometric key, and I know she trusts you with everything."
Leo shook his head weakly, his voice trembling. "I... I don't know what you're talking about! I just paint landscapes! Please, I want to go back to my room..."
"Shut up, you idiot," Arthur snarled, raising the back of his hand to strike Leo across the face.
My blood turned to liquid nitrogen.
Before Dante could even motion, I raised my Smith & Wesson, aimed down through the metal grating of the catwalk directly at the dirt floor three feet to the left of Arthur’s Italian leather shoes, and pulled the trigger.
CRACK.
The deafening roar of the gunshot echoed off the corrugated iron walls like thunder. A shower of concrete sparks exploded right at Arthur's feet.
Arthur screamed like a startled cat, leaping backward and tripping over a toolbox. The eight mercenaries instantly scrambled, swinging their weapons upward toward the catwalk, shouting curses.
"Looking for this, Arthur?" Dante's voice boomed down from the darkness above, carrying the absolute, chilling authority of a king addressing disloyal peasants.
Arthur scrambled to his feet, his face red with rage and humiliation as he pointed up at us. "Kill them! Light up the catlamps! Burn them down!"
"Bad move, Arthur," I called out, leaning over the railing of the catwalk with my pistol leveled right at his chest. "You really should have checked the biohazard surcharge policy before you made a mess in my city."
Before the mercenaries could fire their weapons, the massive steel doors at the far end of the foundry exploded inward with a deafening crash.
Vince, Rocco, and twenty of Dante’s elite enforcers poured into the building like an unstoppable wave of black tactical gear, automatic weapons blazing with suppressive fire. Bullets chewed through the concrete pillars, shattering lights and plunging the foundry into flashing strobes of gunfire and smoke.
Chaos erupted below.
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Dante didn't wait. With the agility of a panther, he vaulted over the catwalk railing, dropping fifteen feet straight down onto the top of a stacked pallet of steel pipes, then landing squarely on the concrete floor amidst the gunfire.
I didn't hesitate either. I hit the emergency stairwell sprint, flying down the metal steps two at a time, my heart roaring in my ears, my eyes locked entirely on Leo.
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