Chapter 30 - The Siege of the Sanctuary
I rushed to the shattered, boarded-up bay window and peered through a narrow crack in the plywood.
Parked aggressively across the street from the foundation were three heavy, black tactical SUVs. Julian Vance stood casually in the pouring rain, protected by an umbrella held by a massive bodyguard. Flanking him were a dozen heavily armed, professional mercenaries wearing full tactical gear and carrying incendiary devices.
He hadn't sent a proxy. He had come to execute the threat personally.
"I have twelve men armed with military-grade thermite, Lena," Julian’s voice crackled through the phone speaker. "I know the police are likely monitoring this perimeter, but my men will burn that building to ashes long before the fire department arrives. Send Clara and the flash drive out the front door right now, and I will let the rest of the women inside live."
"The women aren't here, Julian," I said, a dark, victorious smile touching my lips.
"What?" Julian demanded, a flicker of confusion breaking his arrogant facade.
"I evacuated the entire shelter to a secure, secondary location hours ago," I explained calmly, watching his reaction through the window. "You are standing outside an empty building. There are no hostages for you to terrorize. There is no leverage."
Julian’s face twisted into an ugly, hateful snarl. "Then I will simply kill you and burn the empty shell!"
He signaled his men to advance on the property.
"Now, Michael," I said softly to Detective Shaw.
The dark, quiet street instantly erupted into blinding light. The seemingly empty delivery vans parked on either side of the block suddenly threw open their rear doors. Dozens of heavily armored FBI tactical agents poured out, their laser sights cutting through the heavy rain, completely surrounding Julian and his mercenaries.
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"FBI! Drop your weapons and get on the ground!" a booming voice commanded over a heavy megaphone.
Julian was entirely boxed in. He had walked directly into the kill zone.
