Chapter 24 - The Quarry Crossfire
Chaos erupted instantly on Route 30. The remaining Vanguard mercenaries scattered into the wet ditch grass, pivoting their carbines away from the police van and unleashing a furious wall of suppressive fire toward our vehicle.
Bullets pinged off our reinforced door panels as Julian killed the engine and we bailed out into the mud, taking up defensive positions behind the engine block.
“Police! Drop your weapons! This is a federal jurisdiction!” shouted one of the local state troopers inside the transport van, stepping out with his service pistol drawn, completely unaware of the corporate hit squad’s true identity.
“Get down, you fool!” I yelled, firing a controlled shot that clipped the concrete pavement inches from a mercenary who was trying to flank the trooper’s position.
Ethan and Sarah moved with ruthless synchronization, utilizing the cover of the stalled vehicles to advance on the mercenaries' flanks. Sarah fired two precise rounds from her rifle into the shoulder and leg of the nearest operative, dropping him instantly to the pavement, while Ethan disabled the second mercenary with a swift, non-lethal strike as he tried to reload.
Within ninety seconds, the ambush was broken. The surviving Vanguard guards threw down their weapons and scrambled back into the darkness of the limestone quarry fields, abandoning their vehicles.
I sprinted toward the rear doors of the police transport van, throwing the heavy metal latch open.
My father and Judge Harrison sat inside on the bench seats, covered in soot and shaking from the ordeal, but unharmed.
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“Em?” my father blinked, staring out into the rain. “What... how did you find us?”
“Just following the family tradition, Dad,” I smiled softly, reaching in and pulling him into a tight, fierce embrace.
