Chapter 15 - The Reckoning at Blackwood Manor
Julian Mercer looked up at the barrel of my gun,
a bitter,
defeated laugh escaping his lips.
"You think capturing me stops what is coming,
Claire?"
Mercer sneered,
wiping a streak of blood from his forehead with his silk handkerchief.
"Aegis Holdings is not just a company.
It is an international network.
The Meridian Core encryption keys are already being uploaded to our secondary server at Blackwood Manor."
My eyes narrowed as I processed his words.
"Blackwood Manor?"
I repeated,
remembering the private,
heavily fortified estate my father had mentioned years ago in his personal notes.
"That is where your master command server is located,"
I realized.
"That is where you store the original wiretransfer ledgers and the names of every compromised government official."
"You will never get inside that estate alive,"
Mercer mocked,
stepping out of the SUV with his hands held high as Ethan clicked heavy steel handcuffs around his wrists.
"It is guarded by forty private military contractors with heavy automated defense turrets.
You are just a Captain without a command."
At that exact moment,
the heavy underground garage doors were blown inward with a deafening explosive blast.
Three tactical armored assault vehicles belonging to the United States Army Special Operations Command roared into the garage,
their high-beams blinding us.
Armed Special Forces soldiers in full tactical combat gear poured out of the vehicles,
securing the perimeter in seconds.
Brigadier General Marcus Vance stepped out of the lead vehicle,
marching toward us with an unyielding expression on his face.
"Captain Cross!"
General Vance announced,
his voice carrying deep authority.
"Federal agents have just arrested Deputy Secretary Harrington at the hotel entrance based on your wiretap recordings."
General Vance turned his gaze to the handcuffed Julian Mercer,
his eyes cold and stern.
"And as for Blackwood Manor,"
General Vance added,
looking over at me with a subtle smile,
"two full Special Forces ODA teams are currently airborne in Blackhawk helicopters,
waiting for your signal to initiate the assault."
I looked at Ethan,
then back at General Vance,
feeling the final chapter of my father's war reaching its ultimate climax.
"General,"
I said,
May you like
racking the slide of my firearm and stepping into the lead tactical vehicle,
"give the order to launch."
