Rhea violently shoved four-year-old Perrin into a dark, cramped cavity

The heat wave hit them like a physical blow, singeing the hair on Kiernan's arms as he shoved Sarah through the gap between the massive steel blades of the exhaust fan. She tumbled out into the freezing night air, collapsing into the snow. Kiernan scrambled through just as the automated system detected the fire below.

With a deafening mechanical screech, the massive exhaust fans violently lurched to life. Kiernan barely pulled his combat boot clear before the blades spun up to blinding speed, venting thick, toxic black smoke into the mountain sky.

Kiernan collapsed in the snow beside his wife, gasping for the freezing, thin air. They were on the back ridge of the Iron Garden facility. Below them, muffled explosions rocked the concrete structure as the sub-basements burned.

Before Kiernan could even check on Sarah, a slow, mocking applause echoed through the trees.

Kiernan rolled over, drawing a backup knife from his belt.

Standing in the clearing, flanked by four elite mercenaries with laser-sighted assault rifles trained squarely on Kiernan and Sarah, was Rhea. She was dressed in a pristine white winter coat, untouched by the chaos, her breath pluming in the freezing air.

"I have to admit, Kiernan," Rhea smiled coldly. "I didn't think you'd actually make it out of the basement. You are remarkably stubborn."

Sarah shrank behind Kiernan, trembling in terror at the sight of her former best friend. "Rhea... why? Why did you do this to me?"

Rhea looked down at Sarah with absolute disgust. "Because you didn't deserve him, Sarah. You didn't deserve the empire, the money, the life. You were weak. I just corrected a mistake."

"You faked dental records. You bought a hospital. You imprisoned her for three years," Kiernan snarled, stepping in front of Sarah to shield her from the rifles. "You won't get away with this."

"Oh, but I already have," Rhea laughed, pulling a sleek tablet from her coat pocket. "While you were playing action hero down there, my lawyers finalized the transfer of all your corporate assets into my shell companies. Furthermore, the police have just received an anonymous tip that Kiernan, suffering from severe mental distress, kidnapped his own son, murdered the staff of a private medical facility, and set a bomb to destroy the evidence."

Kiernan tightened his grip on his knife. She had framed him perfectly.

"Kill them both," Rhea ordered the mercenaries, turning her back to walk toward a waiting snowmobile. "Leave the bodies in the fire."

"Down!" Kiernan yelled, tackling Sarah into a snowy ravine just as the mercenaries opened fire. The snow around them erupted in a spray of white powder and flying bark as bullets shredded the trees.

"Kiernan, keep your head down!" Vance's voice screamed in the earpiece.

A sharp crack echoed from the distant ridge. The lead mercenary's head snapped back, and he dropped dead in the snow. A split second later, the thunder of Vance’s heavy thermal sniper rifle rolled across the valley.