Chapter 90: Sixteen Hours
Xavier leaned his forehead against the cold window glass. The red emergency light from Agatha’s room cast a bloody hue over his pale skin. Outside, the world looked like a bottomless black hole. He could feel the rhythmic rumble of heavy engines vibrating through the floorboards beneath his feet.
"They are crossing the fountain area, Xav," Frans’s voice crackled through the radio, buried under a layer of heavy static.
"How many vehicles?" Xavier asked.
"Two armored trucks. They are moving at a crawl. They are using manual searchlights," Frans replied.
"Let them pass the first line of trees. I want them exactly in the open circle," Xavier ordered.
"Ugh," Xavier groaned softly as he tried to shift his weight.
He looked down at his shirt. The red stain had spread all the way to his waist. He gripped the window sill until his knuckles popped. Don Cardios walked up behind him with heavy, measured steps.
"You are losing too much blood, boy," Don Cardios said.
"I have three days. I am not dying before then," Xavier snapped.
"Those trucks are fitted with reinforced steel plating. Small arms fire won't even scratch them," Don Cardios warned.
"I know. That is why we aren't using bullets," Xavier said.
Xavier reached into his tactical vest and pulled out a small, old fashioned remote detonator. It was a hardwired system, a relic from his father’s old security cache. It did not rely on the frequencies that were currently being jammed.
"Frans, are the valves open?" Xavier asked into the radio.
"Valves are open. The basement drainage is flooded with gasoline, Xav," Frans confirmed.
"Get your men to high ground. Nobody stays on the grass," Xavier ordered.
"Copy that. We are on the second floor balconies," Frans said.
Xavier watched a bright beam of light cut through the darkness outside. The first armored truck crawled into view. It was a massive, ugly piece of machinery. The searchlight on top scanned the windows of the estate, pausing briefly on the room where Xavier stood. Xavier did not blink.
"Brak!"
The lead truck plowed through a decorative stone pillar, crushing it easily. The vehicle came to a halt. The second truck pulled up right behind it.
"They are in position," Xavier whispered.
"Wait. Someone is getting out," Don Cardios said.
Xavier narrowed his eyes. The rear door of the second truck swung open. A man in a long coat stepped out. He was holding a manual megaphone.
"Xavier Valois! I know you can hear me!" the man yelled.
"Is that Marco?" Don Cardios asked.
"No. That is Silvio. He is just Marco’s lapdog," Xavier said.
"Xavier! We know your power is out! We know your wife is dying in there! Give us The Rose and we might let the oxygen stay on!" Silvio shouted.
"Akh," Xavier hissed through his teeth.
He gripped the detonator so hard the plastic casing creaked.
"He is trying to bait you. He wants you to show your position," Don Cardios warned.
"I don't need to hide anymore," Xavier said.
Xavier pressed the radio button. "Frans, now."
"Firing now," Frans replied.
"Phuutt! Phuutt!"
Two silenced shots hit the searchlights on top of the trucks. The front lawn plunged back into absolute darkness.
"Hey! What was that?" Silvio’s voice drifted up, filled with sudden nerves.
"Open fire! Spray the windows!" Silvio screamed in a panic.
"Rat tat tat tat!"
Heavy machine gun fire erupted from the trucks. Glass shattered everywhere. Xavier pulled Don Cardios down to the floor as bullets shredded the curtains above them.
"Ugh! Watch the wound!" Don Cardios grunted.
"I am fine!" Xavier yelled over the noise.
"Are they in the circle yet?" Xavier asked into the radio.
"The lead truck is sitting right over the main grate, Xav!" Frans shouted over the roar of gunfire.
Xavier crawled back to the window. He peeked over the ledge. He saw the glowing ember of Silvio’s cigarette as the man ducked behind a truck tire.
"Enjoy the heat, Silvio," Xavier muttered.
Xavier flipped the safety cover on the detonator. He slammed his thumb down on the button.
"BOOM!"
A massive wall of orange flame erupted from the ground. The gasoline in the drainage pipes ignited instantly. The explosion ripped through the iron grates beneath the trucks. The lead vehicle was lifted two feet off the ground before slamming back down into the inferno.
"Akh! My legs! My legs!" a voice screamed from the lawn.
"Don't let them crawl out! Target the doors!" Xavier ordered.
"Brak! Brak!"
Frans and his men opened fire from the roof. They targeted the mercenaries trying to jump out of the burning vehicles. The fire lit up the entire front yard like a twisted carnival.
"Mmhh," Xavier leaned his head against the wall, his face drenched in cold sweat.
"Xavier, look," Don Cardios said, pointing at the monitor room door.
Pierre ran into the room. He looked frantic. His lab coat was stained with fresh blood.
"Xavier! We have a problem with the backup system!" Pierre shouted.
"What? My mother said it would last three days!" Xavier said, his heart hammering against his ribs.
"The explosion just now. It caused a vibration in the foundation of the building. One of the old chemical cells leaked! We just lost forty percent of the power capacity!" Pierre explained breathlessly.
"How much time is left?" Xavier asked.
"Sixteen hours. Maybe less if we keep the life support at full strength," Pierre answered.
Xavier felt the world tilt around him. He looked at the burning trucks outside. He had sacrificed the estate’s safety for a kill zone that was now cutting Agatha’s life short.
"Sixteen hours?" Xavier whispered.
"We have to get her to a real hospital, Xavier. Or we have to get the main generators back online," Pierre said.
"The main generators are in the north wing. Marco’s second team took that building an hour ago," Frans’s voice came through the radio.
Xavier looked at his pistol. He looked at the blood on his hands. He stood up, ignoring the agonizing pull in his gut.
"Frans, get the SUV ready. The one with the plow on the front," Xavier ordered.
"Xav, you can't be serious. You can't even stand straight," Frans argued.
"We are going to the north wing. We are taking back that generator," Xavier said.
"That is a suicide mission. They have a perimeter set up there," Don Cardios added.
"Then I will die in the north wing. But she is going to keep breathing," Xavier said.
Xavier walked toward the door. He stopped and turned to Pierre.
"Keep her heart beating, Pierre. If that monitor goes flat before I turn the lights on, don't bother being there when I get back," Xavier threatened.
"I will do my best, Xavier," Pierre replied.
Xavier stepped out into the dark hallway. He felt a cold breeze blowing in from the shattered windows. He reached the stairs and saw Melynda standing there. She was holding a shotgun.
"I heard the news, Xavier," Melynda said.
"Stay with her, Ma," Xavier said.
"I am coming with you to the north wing," Melynda said firmly.
"No. It is too dangerous," Xavier tried to protest.
"I know where the manual override is, Xavier. Argas showed me. You could spend hours looking for it and still fail. We don't have hours," Melynda stared him down.
Xavier looked at his mother. Her eyes were hard. She wasn't asking for permission.
"Ugh," Xavier gripped the railing.
"Fine. Get in the car," Xavier said.
They reached the basement garage. Frans was already in the driver’s seat of the armored SUV. The engine roared, filling the concrete space with a deafening growl.
"Ready when you are, Xav," Frans reported.
Xavier climbed into the passenger seat. He checked his magazine one last time.
"Frans, if we don't make it to the generator in ten minutes, I want you to do something for me," Xavier said.
"Don't talk like that, Xav," Frans replied.
"Listen to me. If we fail, I want you to take the backup battery and the portable ventilator. Get her out through the woods. Don't look back," Xavier ordered.
"And what about you?" Frans asked quietly.
Xavier looked at the clock on the dashboard. The seconds were ticking away.
"I'll be the one making sure they don't follow you," Xavier said.
The garage door began to open with a screech of grinding metal. The smell of smoke and burning rubber wafted in. Xavier gripped the door handle.
"Go," Xavier commanded.
The SUV lurched forward, tires screaming on the concrete. As they burst out into the night, a heavy thud hit the roof of the car.
"Brak!"
Something was clinging to the top of the vehicle. A pale hand with long, sharp nails scraped against the windshield.
"What the hell is that?" Frans yelled in shock.
"Keep driving! Don't stop!" Xavier shouted.
The hand shattered the glass of the sunroof. A face peered down. It wasn't one of Marco’s men. It was something else entirely.
"Xavier..." a raspy voice whispered from above.
Xavier froze. He recognized that voice. But that person was supposed to be dead.
"Is that...?" Melynda gasped from the back seat.
The hand began to rip through the metal of the roof as if it were thin paper. Xavier aimed his weapon upward, but his finger hesitated on the trigger.
"Wait, don't shoot!" Melynda screamed.