The sirens were growing louder, cutting through the thick silence of the boardroom. Lena could feel her pulse in her throat, the noise like a storm building on the horizon. Andrew's smug smile remained fixed on his face, but Ethan was now a man on edge, his gaze darting from Andrew to the door, as if searching for an escape that wouldn't come.
"What's happening?" Lena asked again, her voice trembling as she twisted in the man's grip.
Andrew glanced down at his phone one more time, his expression unreadable. The sirens grew louder, closer. "You really don't get it, do you, Ethan?" Andrew said, his voice smooth, almost pitying. "You think you can still fight back. You think you can stop me, but the truth is, everything you've built is already in the process of being torn apart."
Ethan's fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles were white. "You've orchestrated all of this," he muttered, eyes narrowing, "but I won't let you have the last word."
Andrew's men flanked him, their guns steady as they kept their eyes on Ethan. "You're out of options," Andrew continued. "The company? In my hands. Your reputation? Already on the verge of collapse. And Lena?" He glanced at her with a cold smile. "Well, she's just one more piece in the game."
Lena swallowed hard, her chest tight with anxiety. The man holding her arm wasn't letting go, his fingers digging into her skin like a vise. Every instinct screamed for her to fight back, but she couldn't move, couldn't break free.
The sirens grew deafening, and just as Lena opened her mouth to speak, the door to the boardroom was suddenly thrown open. In the doorway stood a group of uniformed officers, guns drawn, their faces stern and unreadable. The world seemed to freeze for a fraction of a second.
"Hands in the air! Everyone, drop your weapons!" one of the officers shouted, their voice cutting through the tension like a knife.
Lena's heart skipped a beat. For a moment, it felt like everything had shifted in her favor, but then she saw Andrew's eyes flicker to his men. The same men who had been standing by his side, poised and ready to strike. They didn't even flinch.
Before anyone could react, the men fired, the loud cracks of gunshots reverberating off the walls. The officers dropped to the floor with a sickening thud, their bodies crumpling. The chaos erupted in an instant, and Lena's world spun into action, the gunfire deafening, the staccato rhythm of the shots hammering in her chest.
"Get down!" Ethan roared, grabbing her and pulling her toward the far side of the room, out of the line of fire.
Lena stumbled, her legs shaking as she fought to keep up. The man holding her arm was still right there, dragging her back toward the center of the room, his gun aimed at Ethan. But just as he raised it, a shot rang out from the corner, and the man's body jerked back, his grip loosening. Lena yanked her arm free and scrambled behind a desk, her heart racing, chest heaving with fear.
"Ethan!" she shouted, her voice barely audible over the sounds of chaos.
Ethan had already moved. He was crouching low, his eyes scanning the room, his movements sharp and purposeful. He was no longer the man who had been caught in Andrew's web. No, now he was the predator, his instincts fully engaged. He sprinted across the room, his body low to the ground, his hand reaching into his jacket for something.
Lena's head snapped to the side as the remaining gunmen began to move, using the chaos to their advantage. They were trying to regroup, to get into position. But Ethan had other plans.
"Stay down!" Ethan yelled at her, his eyes locking with hers for a split second. His voice was commanding, yet laced with something she couldn't quite place—something raw, something desperate.
The moment they made eye contact, Lena felt a jolt in her chest. Her breath caught. Ethan wasn't just fighting for survival now. He was fighting for her. For them.
The noise around her became a blur. She heard shouts, footsteps, the clinking of metal. Then, the loudest sound of all: Ethan's voice. He barked orders, and in that instant, Lena realized that this wasn't just a battle of power—it was a battle for everything they had left.
A shot rang out near her, a bullet grazing her cheek, sending a stinging pain across her face. She gasped, ducking back behind the desk. Her heart hammered in her ears, but the pain was nothing compared to the fear she felt for Ethan.
"Get up!" a man shouted, his voice cutting through the mayhem.
Lena's eyes darted around the room. There was no time to think. The gunmen were closing in, and she had no idea where Ethan had gone. Her hands trembled, and she gripped the edge of the desk, willing herself to think. To act. She couldn't just stay hidden.
The world seemed to move in slow motion. Lena's body reacted before her mind could catch up. She grabbed the first object within reach—a heavy chair—and hurled it toward the nearest gunman. It collided with his chest, sending him stumbling backward. The distraction was enough for her to break free from the desk, but she didn't have much time.
In a split second, she darted toward a nearby cabinet, wrenching open the drawer, her fingers brushing against papers and files. Then, her hand closed around something cold. A gun. A weapon. She didn't think about it. She didn't have time.
Without hesitation, she spun around, her heart pounding in her chest, and aimed the weapon at the nearest figure. The man's eyes widened in shock, and he stumbled backward, hands raised in defense.
"Stay back!" she shouted, her voice hoarse, but full of authority. "Stay down!"
The man hesitated, but then, he lunged toward her. Time slowed as she pulled the trigger.
The gunshot rang out, loud and deafening, sending a shockwave through her body. The man fell to the ground with a grunt, his body crumpling at her feet. Lena's hands shook, the gun still gripped tightly in her hand.
She didn't have time to process what had just happened. She couldn't afford to think. She had to keep moving.
"Ethan!" she screamed, her voice desperate.
A flash of movement at the far side of the room caught her attention. Ethan was there, in the thick of it all, firing shots at the remaining men, his eyes intense with focus. But there were more of them than she had anticipated. More than she could handle.
The door to the boardroom crashed open again, and two more armed men rushed in, their eyes scanning the room.
"Get to the back!" Ethan shouted, his voice urgent.
Lena didn't need to be told twice. She dashed for the exit, her heart pounding in her chest. But as she reached the door, her world shattered in an instant.
A gunshot rang out, and the world turned black.