Chapter 12 - THE BRINK OF DESTRUCTION
The red blinking lights of the tripwires cast an eerie glow across the concrete lot.
Marcus froze inside the SUV, his hand hovering over the door handle.
"Don't move, Marcus," Nathaniel warned without turning around.
"One twitch and the entire vehicle goes up."
Julian Vane laughed, tossing the detonator switch carelessly from hand to hand.
"Impressed, Nathaniel?" Vane mocked, stepping closer.
"I spent six months rigging this entire dock."
"You thought you won because you exposed a corrupt senator?"
"Politicians are disposable. Brothers are forever."
Nathaniel’s eyes narrowed.
"You abandoned our unit in Berlin, Julian."
"You sold our men to the FSB for a payout."
"And now you want to lecture me about brotherhood?"
Vane’s smile faded, replaced by a mask of cold fury.
"Survival isn't treason, Nathaniel!" Vane snarled, stepping forward.
"You let sentimentality make you weak!"
"Look at you—protecting maids, raising motherless brats!"
"You're no longer a Don."
"You're a domestic pet!"
Inside the SUV, Elodie stirred awake.
Rubbing her eyes, she looked out the window and saw the red blinking lights.
"Daddy?" her small voice drifted through the comms speaker.
Nathaniel’s jaw clenched so hard a muscle twitched.
"Stay inside, little bird," Nathaniel said softly, keeping his eyes locked on Vane.
"Everything is fine."
Vane raised his knife, the blade glistening under the moonlight.
"Let's settle this the old way, brother," Vane challenged.
"Just you and me."
"No guns. No backup."
"Winner takes the syndicate."
Nathaniel unbuttoned his dark trench coat and let it drop to the wet ground.
"You always were overconfident, Julian," Nathaniel replied quietly.
He stepped across the first tripwire with terrifying precision.
Vane lunged forward like a striking viper.
The knife slashed toward Nathaniel’s throat.
Nathaniel sidestepped with fluid grace, catching Vane’s wrist mid-air.
Twisting it with bone-crushing force.
Vane grunted in pain, dropping the knife into the puddle.
Before Vane could recover, Nathaniel delivered a devastating right hook to his jaw.
Vane stumbled backward, crashing against the side of a rusted container.
Blood sprayed from his split lip.
"Is that all you've got?" Vane spat, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
He suddenly smiled a sick, twisted grin.
"You forgot one thing, brother."
Vane slammed his palm against a master switch hidden on the container wall.
The red blinking lights turned solid amber.
The timer on the landmines engaged.
Beeping rapidly.
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$00:10... 00:09... 00:08$...
Cliffhanger: As the timer beeped frantically toward zero, Vane lunged at Nathaniel, tackling them both backward into the perimeter just as the first mine exploded in a blinding wall of fire.
