Aidan gazed forward on the TV in the badly lit room. Sitting next him were Marcus and Dominic, their blue-glow-lit features beaming over papers. Years of work, of painstakingly gathered statistics, of building allies and waiting his time had delivered this moment. Now at last ready to present Victor Pierce, his uncle, to the world, Aidan was
"Once we go live with this, there's no going back," Marcus remarked, eyes narrows as he peered at Aidan.
Aidan showed no doubt at all. "Good". Victor has to know exactly who is pilfering all he acquired.
Domineering the material they had compiled—bank transactions, secret recordings, contracts tying Victor directly to arms deals, money laundering, and corruption— Dominic pressed a few buttons. Low voice, "This is all out war, Aidan," he said. "You eager for that??"
With a quiet but steely voice, Aidan added, "I have waited my whole life for this." Allow us to do this.
Marcus nodded once then pushed a key delivering the info. Social networking platforms, reporters, and news organizations were humming with incoming notifications. Every network, every platform, every magazine carried evidence of Victor's illicit business. Emails, recordings, transaction logs—all of it now available online.
They waited, hardly breathing, while the news developed.
One headline appeared at a time.
Pierce Corp Tied to Organized Crime "victor Pierce Revealed in Shocking Corruption Scandal," "Pierce Empire Created on Blood and Lies"
First stories accompanied waves of internet fury. Aidan watched as the response developed, tweets and comments from furious people demanding justice screamed for attention. On a live feed, protesters arriving at Pierce Corp offices yelled furious and bewildered screams. People posted placards calling for Victor's arrest alleging treason.
Marcus laughed, arms folded and watched the pandemonium unfold. Look at them, he pushed, eyes gleaming. Around Victor, his world is falling.
Aidan's phone hummed incessantly with calls and texts from reporters, supporters, and former coworkers. He neglected them all but paid the television all of his attention. "He's not going down without a fight," he said softly. "He'll strike back."
The TV showed a live broadcast, and Victor, pale but steady, was seated in his office trying to minimize damage.
"These accusations are lies," Victor said, his voice cool and steady. Those jealous of my accomplishment are attacking fiercely right here. He halted, his voice softening as one would be addressing a specific injury. My own blood contains this treachery. Motivated by bitterness and annoyance, my nephew Aidan is driving this defamation campaign.
Aidan's jaw tensed as he listened his uncle spin the reality to manipulate public compassion.
"Classic movement," Dominic declared. He cast himself as the victim.
Aidan spoke with sharp cold clarity. "It is not going to work." Not at the moment.
He glanced to Marcus, who nodded and jotted some quick orders. The live show split to a recorded conversation between Victor and a reputable gun dealer. Clear and coldly addressing the pragmatics of gun sales, laundering operations, and illegal transactions, Victor's voice on the audio sounded unassuming.
As Victor's incriminating comments flowed over the radio, the room grew still. It was clearly bad and destructive. A reporter stammered trying to make sense of what she was hearing while viewers all throughout the city sat stunned and fixated on their TVs.
The return of the feed to his office caused Victor to lose his façade of calm. Pale, his eyes darting as he realized the weight of what had suddenly been known. For a moment he looked naked, caught without his usual mantle of confidence.
His expression clouded then as he angrily turned toward the camera. Aidan said, his voice frigid and hostile, "You think you can destroy me." You have no idea what you are up against.
Victor sliced the feed with that.
The silence that followed was charged, like a storm just ready to blow.
Aidan felt quite happy, although slightly mitigated by a sense of foreboding. He knew his uncle enough to understand this was far from done.
Marcus looked down, his face reddened as his phone buzzed with a message. "Aidan, you want to see this."
Aidan picked the phone and quickly checked the message. From one of their Pierce Corp links, it was:
Victor has brought armed security guards. He is laying on a takeover. Ready?
Aidan's gut closes. "He's planning a last stand," he said, a horrible will hardening under great determination. "He is rendering the Pierce building a fortification."
Dominic's face grew black in hue. "This is going to look bad."
Then let's wrap it up tonight, Aidan murmured, already walking towards the door. We are pulling him down permanently.
An hour later Aidan, Marcus, and Dominic arrived among the wave of protestors heading toward Pierce Corp's soaring headquarters. The viewers provided cover; their animosity drove the drama's intensity. Armed and alert, security guards surrounded the front door; Victor's personal guards watched the higher floors, poised for any breach.
Aidan slipped passed surveillance cameras and up a stairs to hide from view, guiding his team to a side door. Once within, they negotiated the black passages softly and moved quickly. The anxiety was clear as they approached the executive floor, where Victor would be waiting, every sound magnified.
Approaching Victor's office door, Aidan motioned Marcus and Dominic back. He went forward, his hand resting on the doorknob, then pulled it open.
Victor was at his desk, his face black and rebellious and his posture tight. He was by himself, a gun sitting on the polished wood front.
"Well, well," Victor murmured, fixedly staring at Aidan. "The progyal son shows up again."
Aidan's eyes grew narrow. "This ends tonight, Victor".
Victor chuckled, a stinging, cynical sound. "You think you could tear down everything I have built, walk away unscathed, and waltz in here?" He lifted the weapon with strong hand. Aidan, you still have the naivety of always.
Aidan moved without thinking twice. "Your empire is gone, Victor," said People grasp the truth. Your friends are deserting you, your investors are leaving; nowhere is left for you to hide.
Victor's expression twisted in fury. "My empire is not gone," he said angrily. "It will survive; it has been attacked, definitely. Different than you are.
Victor without any word pressed a button on his desk. Alarms went off, and the walls seemed to pulse as secret doors opened to send armed men down the hall. Marcus and Dominic prepared, then moved to be near Aidan.
With disgust, Victor said, "You're outnumbered, outgunned, and outsmited." "Did you really hope I would let you take this from me?"
Aidan kept his ground and piercing eyes met his uncle. "You are alone, Victor; you may have the numbers but. Like normally.
As the guards raised their weapons, bullets filled the small space Aidan and his team answered back. Aidan moved exactly; years of training had generated every intentional movement. He had spent his whole getting ready for this time and was not ready to let Victor take it from him.
Guards advancing from all sides battled hard as Aidan's team defended their position. Two more seemed to replace every guard that dropped; bullets bounced off walls. Aidan looked behind a pillar at Marcus and Dominic. "We have to go forward; there is no turning back."
Every stride closer to Victor, they battled their way down the hall seeking cover wherever they could. Still, a troop deluge barred their path to the office door. Their ammo count was low, surrounded, outnumbered.
Aidan looked across the glass wall of his office and saw the triumphant glitter in his uncle's eyes.
"This is where you fall, Aidan," Victor said with poison. "Your minor crusade is over."
Aidan still had to finish though. Examining Marcus and Dominic, he nodded firmly. They would fight straight until the very last; should they fall, Victor would go with them.
The last shots crossed the hallway, Aidan's squad was surrounded and encircled, the fight far from over.