Chapter 2 - Breach at the Gate“Get to the back hallway,” Caleb ordered, his voice shifting instantly into the calm, authoritative tone of a tactical commander.
He checked the magazine of his customized sidearm, racked the slide, and killed the main power switches to the ground floor. The house plunged into darkness, lit only by the violent flashes of lightning outside.
The mercenaries did not knock. Two flashbang grenades shattered the reinforced floor-to-ceiling windows in the living room, filling the space with blinding light and deafening pressure waves.
Four armed men stepped through the shattered glass, their night-vision goggles glowing faint green in the dark.
They expected an defenseless homeowner and an injured woman. What they found was a ghost trained in urban warfare.
Caleb stepped out from the shadows of the kitchen pillar. Three suppressed shots echoed in rapid succession. The lead operative dropped instantly. Before the second could raise his rifle, Caleb swept his legs, drove an elbow into his throat, and used his body as a shield against a hail of incoming gunfire from the remaining two men.
Bullets chewed through the hardwood floor and marble counters. Caleb fired around the corner, taking down the third man, while the fourth retreated back into the storm.
“The house is compromised!” Caleb shouted, running back to the inner corridor.
Victoria was leaning heavily against the wall, holding a flash drive tightly in her hand. Her face was ghost-white from blood loss, but her green eyes remained sharp. “The driver in the lead vehicle... that’s Vance. He’s the head of security for Apex Global. He won't stop until he burns this place to the ground.”
“Then we leave,” Caleb said.
He rushed to the heavy steel door of the safe room. “Emma, open up. It’s Daddy.”
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The door slid open, and Emma ran out, clutching her one-eared stuffed rabbit. She looked around at the flickering lights and the smell of gunpowder in terror, but Caleb scooped her up in one broad arm and held her tight against his chest.
“Daddy’s got you,” Caleb whispered into her curls. “We’re taking a trip.”
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