Chapter 4 - The Breach
"GET DOWN!" Ethan yelled, throwing himself over Sarah and Emily as the sound of footsteps rushed into the hallway.
Two men dressed in black tactical gear, their faces covered by ski masks, burst into the bedroom. One of them held a silenced pistol, while the other carried a heavy stun baton.
"Hand over the flash drive, Vance!" the lead gunman barked, his voice distorted by a radio filter. "Your uncle wants his property back!"
"Stay behind me!" Ethan ordered Sarah, shoving her and Emily into the walk-in closet and slamming the door shut.
Before the gunman could raise his weapon, Ethan lunged forward with military precision! He grabbed the gunman’s wrist, twisting it violently downward until the pistol clattered to the floor. The second man swung the stun baton, catching Ethan hard across his ribs. Sparks flew, and a surge of electricity coursed through Ethan’s body, forcing him to his knees with a roar of pain.
"Ethan!" Sarah screamed from inside the closet.
"Don't come out!" Ethan gritted his teeth, kicking out with his uninjured leg and striking the second attacker squarely in the kneecap. The man collapsed with a sickening crunch.
The lead gunman tackled Ethan from behind, slamming his head against the hardwood floor. "You should have stayed out of this, Sergeant! You’re just a broken soldier!"
Ethan felt his vision blur, blood dripping from a cut on his forehead. But as he looked toward the closet door, he saw Emily peeking through the slats, her wide, terrified eyes filled with tears—the exact same look of terror he had seen on Mark’s face before the mountain gave way.
“Protect my family, Ethan!” Mark’s final words echoed in his mind like thunder.
With a surge of adrenaline, Ethan let out a guttural roar. He reached up, grabbed the gunman by his tactical vest, and flipped the heavy man over his shoulder, crashing him directly into the heavy wooden dresser! The dresser collapsed, knocking the attacker unconscious.
Breathing heavily, his chest aching from the electric shock, Ethan snatched the fallen pistol and checked the hallway. It was clear.
He opened the closet door. Sarah was clutching a terrified Emily, both of them shaking violently.
"Are you okay?" Ethan rasped, wiping blood from his eye.
"Ethan, you're bleeding!" Sarah cried, reaching for his face.
"There's no time," Ethan said urgently, pulling them up. "Richard knows we have the drive. He sent mercenaries to get it. This house isn't safe anymore. We need to get to the Federal Courthouse in the capital right now."
"We'll take my truck," Ethan added, picking up Emily and carrying her securely against his chest. "I’m taking this evidence to the United States Attorney General. We are going to finish what Mark started."
As they drove out into the stormy night, leaving the quiet town behind, Emily wrapped her arms tightly around Ethan’s neck.
"Ethan?" she whispered softly through the dark cab of the truck.
"Yes, sweetheart?"
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"My daddy selected you to protect us because he knew you were brave, right?"
Ethan looked in the rearview mirror at the little girl, his heart swelling with a warmth he hadn't felt in years. "Your daddy was the brave one, Emily. I’m just making sure his light never goes out."
