Chapter 8 - The Breach
The North Sea was violent and unforgiving.
We chartered a black-market supply chopper and flew low under the radar, cutting through a massive oceanic storm. Through the driving rain, the colossal steel structure of Site Echo rose from the black water like a mechanical monster.
"Two minutes to drop!" Vance shouted over the roar of the helicopter blades, adjusting his tactical helmet.
I gripped my MP5 submachine gun, my heart pounding in my throat. I wasn't acting as a Naval Intelligence officer anymore. I was a daughter going to war.
We used Helen’s access codes to bypass the automated anti-air turrets. The chopper hovered thirty feet above the helipad, and we fast-roped down onto the slick, rain-swept steel deck.
The moment our boots hit the metal, the base alarms shrieked.
"They know we're here!" Vance yelled.
A squad of heavily armored Vanguard mercenaries poured out of the primary airlock. We didn't hesitate. Vance threw a flashbang, and I moved with lethal precision, taking down three men with controlled bursts.
We breached the airlock, moving deeper into the industrial bowels of the rig. The air smelled of ozone and rust.
Using the schematics I pulled from Thorne, we bypassed the main security checkpoints, crawling through the ventilation shafts to reach the sub-level detention blocks.
I dropped from the ceiling grate into a sterile, white corridor lined with reinforced steel doors.
"Check the cells," I ordered.
We cleared them one by one. Empty. Empty. Empty.
Finally, I reached cell 04. Through the reinforced glass, I saw him.
My father.
He was strapped to a medical chair, bruised, bloodied, and hooked up to a dozen IV bags.
"Dad," I choked out, blowing the electronic lock with a breaching charge.
I ran to his side, tearing the IV lines from his arms. He was barely conscious, his breathing shallow.
"Sarah?" he whispered, his eyes fluttering open. "You... you shouldn't be here."
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"I'm not leaving you," I said, hauling him to his feet. "We're going home."
"No," he gasped, gripping my arm with surprising strength. "The servers. The core data. It’s in the next room. If we leave without destroying it, Vanguard survives."
