Chapter 1168
[ 628 words ]
“Dr. Sommers is gone!”
“What?” The color drained from Corvus’s face. “Lock down every exit on Wraithfall Mountain!” he roared. “Find her immediately!”
Panic erupted in the thick smoke. Corvus stumbled blindly, rushing toward the main exit. He grabbed the handle and yanked, but the heavy doors refused to budge.
Just as confusion set in, Juniper materialized beside him, lazily lifting an eyebrow. “If everything went according to plan, she’s already out of the underground facility.”
*BOOM-*
Another deafening explosion tore through the air. Beyond the shattered glass, flames roared to life.
The underground lab was on fire. The room was packed with volatile chemicals. Once they caught fire, the resulting chain reaction would be catastrophic.
Everyone has a primal fear of death, and Corvus’s loyal men were no exception. Faced with absolute destruction, self-preservation kicked in. Explosions, roaring fires, toxic smoke… the lab devolved into pure chaos as everyone stampeded toward the exits.
In the madness, no one was looking for Theia Sommers.
“She won’t get far,” Corvus snarled, glaring at Juniper with venomous certainty. “She can never escape me.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Juniper smiled back, her words a flawless psychological strike.
Corvus’s stomach dropped as he stared at her calm face. Something was horribly wrong.
Before he could think, his radio crackled to life.
“Boss! The core lab’s self-destruct sequence was triggered!” a guard screamed over the static. “The fire is out of control! All the research data is trapped inside. It’s gone!”
What?
Decades of his life’s work, completely annihilated? With the data incinerated and Theia gone, there was zero chance of him ever starting over.
Corvus’s neck snapped toward Juniper, his eyes bloodshot with rage. He pulled his gun and aimed it straight at her head. “You did this?!” he bellowed through gritted teeth.
“I did,” Juniper confessed without a second of hesitation.
“Why?!” Corvus roared, stepping closer. “You dare betray me, Specter?! Guards! Get in here! If this research is destroyed, I’ll tear you apart!”
Juniper merely smirked, her smile radiant and serene. “Don’t bother shouting, Mr. Thorne. No one is coming.”
Because of Corvus’s crippling paranoia and obsession with secrecy, very few guards were stationed directly outside the gene modification lab-only his most trusted inner circle. When she entered tuella Ebony Fox Belton, and Flint had stayed behind. In the ensuing chaos, her team would have easily neutralized every guard stationed near Corvus’s private sectors.
Corvus shot her a dark look and yanked open the door to the corridor. It was completely deserted. The air was thick with smoke and the nauseating stench of burning chemicals.
“You think taking out a few guards
means she’s safe?” Corvus
tightened his grip on the gun and tapped his comms earpiece Shut down the harbor and seal every exit off the island! Find Dr. Sommers at all costs!”
He paused, a cruel sneer twisting his face. “Put the PA system on max volume. Tell
her if she doesn’t come back, I’ll start carving pieces off Silas Blackwood.”
Having Silas was like having his hand around Theia’s throat. He wasn’t afraid.
“I bet she gets away,” Juniper said. She stood there, completely relaxed, her expression bordering on arrogant. “Why don’t you look out the window, Mr. Thorne?” Corvus shot a quick glance through the reinforced glass.
A massive fleet of advanced, heavily armed helicopters was hovering in formation right above Wraithfall Mountain. They clearly weren’t local authorities.
“What exactly are you trying to achieve, Specter?” Corvus growled, his knuckles white around his gun. “Do you want the research for yourself?”
“You think I care about your pathetic
little project? Juniper scoffed, brushing a stray lock of hair from her face with a mocking smile. “Let me let you in on a secret. Your Gene
Modification Project was Gene
never
going to work.”
“Dr. Sommers spent days running in circles. Didn’t you notice she was always stuck
on the same critical step?”
“So, how about we make a deal instead?”
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