Chapter 16 - The Vault of Secrets
The elevator glided to a smooth,
silent halt at the penthouse level of The Obsidian,
the small,
digital display above the doors turning from glowing red to an icy blue.
Eleanor stepped over Marco's lifeless body,
her crimson gown swishing softly against the floor,
and checked the tiny,
suppressed pistol strapped to her thigh beneath the silk fabric.
She pressed the severed thumb against the internal biometric scanner,
the machine authenticating the print with a soft chirp,
and the heavy gold-plated doors slid open,
revealing a long,
opulent hallway lined with classical art and heavy,
oak doors.
"I am on the executive floor,"
Eleanor whispered,
her voice perfectly level,
stepping out into the quiet corridor,
moving with the silent,
predatory grace of a panther stalking its prey.
"The main vault is located at the end of the hall,
behind the heavily reinforced double doors,"
Silas instructed rapidly through the earpiece,
the sound of his fingers flying across his keyboard echoing softly over the comms.
"But be careful,
Phantom,
my thermal scans show four heat signatures inside the room,
and they are heavily armed."
"Understood,"
she replied,
her face a mask of absolute,
chilling calm,
not slowing her pace as she approached the heavy doors.
Inside the surveillance van,
Asher leaned so close to the monitor that his nose almost touched the glass,
his knuckles white as he gripped the edge of the console,
his heart hammering a frantic rhythm in his chest.
"She's walking into a crossfire,"
Asher muttered,
his voice strained,
the protective older brother instincts battling violently with his trust in her lethal skills.
Eleanor did not attempt to pick the lock,
she did not try to sneak her way in,
she simply raised her hand and knocked politely on the heavy mahogany wood,
a soft,
rhythmic tapping that echoed loudly in the silent hallway.
The doors swung open abruptly,
revealing a massive,
heavily armed guard,
his tactical rifle raised,
his eyes narrowing suspiciously at the beautiful woman standing alone in the corridor.
"Who the hell are you?"
the guard barked,
his finger resting dangerously close to the trigger.
Eleanor smiled,
a sweet,
charming expression that completely masked the deadly intent in her eyes,
and held up a small,
silver tray she had taken from the elevator lobby.
"Room service for Mr. Romano,"
she answered smoothly,
her voice bright and innocent,
"Marco sent me up with a fresh bottle of champagne."
The guard hesitated,
his eyes flickering over her stunning dress and the expensive bottle sitting on the tray,
his strict orders warring with the deeply ingrained habit of obeying Marco's commands.
In that split second of hesitation,
Eleanor moved.
She dropped the tray,
the heavy bottle shattering on the floor,
and surged forward with terrifying,
explosive speed.
She grabbed the barrel of the guard's rifle,
shoving it forcefully upward,
the weapon discharging into the ceiling with a deafening roar,
showering the hallway with plaster dust.
Before the guard could recover,
she drove her elbow brutally into his sternum,
crushing the bone,
and followed up with a vicious knee to his chin,
sending his unconscious body crashing to the floor.
She stepped over him,
drawing her suppressed pistol in a fluid,
lightning-fast motion,
and burst into the massive,
luxurious office serving as Donatello's vault room.
The remaining three guards scrambled to raise their weapons,
shouting in panic,
but Eleanor was a phantom,
a blur of crimson and lethal precision.
Phut.
Phut.
Phut.
Three suppressed shots echoed in the room,
each bullet finding its target with surgical,
terrifying accuracy,
dropping the guards before they even had a chance to pull their triggers.
The room fell silent,
the stench of gunpowder and blood mixing with the expensive cigar smoke lingering in the air,
leaving Eleanor standing alone amidst the bodies,
her gun still raised,
her breathing completely even.
"Room secure,"
she reported coldly,
stepping over the fallen men,
her eyes sweeping the office,
locking onto the massive,
steel vault door set into the far wall.
"I see the vault,
Silas,"
she stated,
moving toward the heavy metal wheel,
"Give me the code."
"I'm bypassing the firewall now,"
Silas replied,
the sound of rapid typing filling the comms,
"It's a high-level encryption,
it will take me a minute to crack the sequence."
"You don't have a minute,"
I warned,
staring at the secondary monitor in the van,
my blood running cold as I watched the thermal imaging.
"Donatello just entered the VIP lounge downstairs,
and his security team is moving toward the elevators,
they heard the gunshot."
Eleanor stood before the massive steel door,
her face expressionless,
May you like
waiting for the codes,
completely unfazed by the small army rushing upward to kill her.
