Chapter 6
The ground floor of the Iron Garden was a labyrinth of abandoned therapy rooms and administrative offices, but Kiernan navigated it with deadly efficiency. He reached the heavy double doors of the main control room. Through the reinforced glass, he could see the warden—a heavily built man with a shaved head—slouching in a leather chair, staring at a bank of security monitors.
Kiernan didn't bother with stealth. He kicked the double doors with enough force to shatter the magnetic lock.
The warden leaped out of his chair, reaching for the sidearm on his hip, but Kiernan was already across the room. He slammed the warden against the console, shattering two of the monitors, and pressed his forearm against the man's throat, pinning him backward.
"Biometrics for the freight elevator. Now," Kiernan demanded, applying pressure until the man gasped for air.
"You're... Kiernan," the warden choked out, a bloody smile forming on his lips. "She said you'd be faster than the cops. You're too late, rich boy."
"Open the elevator, or I blow your knee out and drag you to the scanner myself."
The warden laughed, a wet, hacking sound. "Go ahead. You think I care? We got orders five minutes ago. The protocol has changed. We're not moving her."
Kiernan's blood ran cold. "What do you mean?"
"Rhea called. She said if you showed up, we initiate the purge protocol." The warden coughed, pointing a shaking finger at the red flashing light on the central console. "Sub-basement two is rigged with incendiaries. It’s a sealed vault. In ten minutes, the whole floor burns to ash. No evidence. No wife."
"Cancel it!" Kiernan roared, slamming his gun against the man’s temple.
"I can't!" the warden cried out, panic finally breaking through his bravado. "Only Rhea has the abort code! Once it starts, the fire doors lock down mechanically!"
Kiernan threw the man to the floor. He stared at the console. A digital timer was counting down on the main screen.
08:45... 08:44...
"Vance, did you copy that?" Kiernan yelled into the comms, sprinting out of the control room and sprinting down the hallway toward the freight elevator.
"I copied," Vance replied, his voice tense. "I'm trying to hack the mainframe remotely, but the firewall is military-grade. Kiernan, if those fire doors shut, you'll be trapped down there with her. You'll burn alive."
"I'm not leaving her again!" Kiernan shouted, swiping the stolen keycard at the elevator. Access denied. He cursed, pulled his weapon, and shot the biometric scanner. Sparks flew, and the mechanical failsafe triggered, unlocking the heavy steel grate.
Kiernan ripped the doors open and jumped into the empty elevator shaft. He grabbed the grease-slicked steel cables and began sliding down into the abyss, the friction burning his tactical gloves.
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"Kiernan, there are four guards waiting for you at the bottom!" Vance warned. "They're heavily armed!"
"Let them come," Kiernan snarled through his teeth as he plummeted into the dark. "They're just dead men standing."
