Chapter 19 - THE PRICE OF AN EMPIRE
Daniel stepped in front of Clara and Noah, shielding them with his broad back, his eyes locked on the woman above. "The fight is between us, Victoria. Let the boy go. He’s Julian’s blood."
"Julian’s blood was weak," Victoria spat, her elegant mask slipping to reveal the rabid psychopath beneath. "He thought he could take my family's legacy and give it to a tavern waitress's bastard child! I built that pharmaceutical conglomerate with my bare hands! I decided who lived, who died, and what pills this country swallowed! And Julian wanted to hand it to a brat who can barely tie his shoes!"
Victoria snapped her fingers. One of the mercenaries raised his weapon, training the red laser dot directly onto Noah’s forehead.
Noah began to weep silently, gripping Clara's sodden jeans.
"Drop the cylinder, Daniel," Victoria purred, walking slowly down the spiral stairs, step by deliberate step. "The microchip. Drop it on the concrete floor and smash it with your boot, and maybe... just maybe... I’ll let you and Clara die quickly. Otherwise, I’ll take the boy to international waters, and you will spend the next forty-eight hours watching what happens to him on a live video stream."
Clara looked at Daniel. Daniel’s eyes were bloodshot, his muscles coiled to spring, but against two automatic weapons, any sudden movement was suicide.
Slowly, Daniel reached into his pocket and pulled out the tiny silver capsule. He held it out between his thumb and forefinger.
"Here it is," Daniel said hoarsely. "Everything Julian collected. The bank codes. The hitman's wire receipts. The autopsy report on the boat mechanic."
Victoria's eyes dilated with ravenous greed. She came down the final flight of stairs, stopping ten feet away. "Kick it over to me."
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Daniel lowered his hand, his eyes burning with a desperate, wild fire. "You destroyed my life. You killed my best friend. But you won't touch this boy."
Daniel didn't kick the capsule. He flicked it upward with blinding speed—not toward Victoria, but directly into the open gear housing of the lighthouse's massive rotating lens mechanism humming in the corner.
