Chapter 14: Sixty Seconds

The piercing electronic beeps echoed through every corner of the abandoned steel mill.

Bright red countdown timers flashed from dozens of explosive devices hidden among the support pillars.

00:59...

00:58...

00:57...

"Everyone evacuate!" Marco roared.

His voice thundered across the warehouse.

Every De Luca soldier immediately sprang into action.

"Move! Move! Move!" Luca shouted.

Benjamin Hamilton, still weak from captivity, stumbled toward the nearest exit with Miriam supporting him.

Devon looked around in horror.

"There are bombs everywhere..."

"Victor planned this from the beginning," Marco replied.

"This wasn't an exchange."

"It was an execution."

"Where is Victor?"

Marco scanned the smoke-filled warehouse.

"Gone."

"He escaped during the confusion."

"Forget him!" Luca yelled.

"We have less than a minute!"

The group rushed toward the main exit.

Suddenly, part of the damaged ceiling collapsed with a deafening crash.

Massive steel beams slammed onto the concrete floor.

Dust filled the air.

"Dad!" Devon shouted.

Benjamin had fallen.

A heavy steel beam had trapped his right leg.

"Go!" Benjamin yelled through clenched teeth.

"Leave me!"

"Not happening," Devon replied.

He grabbed the beam with both hands and tried lifting it.

It barely moved.

"It's too heavy!"

"Luca!" Marco called.

"On it!"

The two men joined Devon.

Together they pushed against the twisted steel.

It slowly lifted.

"Again!" Marco shouted.

"One more time!"

Benjamin managed to pull his injured leg free.

"Run!"

00:34...

00:33...

"We're not going to make it," one of the guards warned.

"Yes, we are," Marco answered firmly.

Another explosion erupted somewhere deeper inside the mill.

Fire spread rapidly through old fuel pipes.

"Secondary detonations!" Luca warned.

"Boss!"

"The north exit is blocked!"

"Take the east loading dock," Marco ordered.

"It's our only chance."

Everyone changed direction.

Smoke grew thicker with every passing second.

Visibility dropped to only a few feet.

Devon struggled to breathe.

"I can't see anything!"

Marco grabbed his wrist.

"Stay with me."

"Don't let go."

Devon tightened his grip instinctively.

"I won't."

As they neared the loading dock, another steel support collapsed directly in front of them.

The emergency exit was completely sealed.

"Damn it!" Luca cursed.

"We're trapped!"

"No," Marco replied.

"There's another way."

"Where?"

Marco pointed toward an old maintenance tunnel beneath the conveyor system.

"It's narrow."

"But it'll lead outside."

"Only one problem," Luca said.

"The tunnel collapsed years ago."

"Partially," Marco corrected.

"I used it once."

"Follow me."

00:18...

The group crawled toward the narrow tunnel entrance.

One by one they squeezed inside.

Benjamin struggled because of his injured leg.

"Keep moving," Devon encouraged.

"We're almost there."

Behind them, the first major explosion ripped through the warehouse.

The entire tunnel shook violently.

Concrete cracked overhead.

Dust poured down like rain.

"Faster!" Marco shouted.

"The tunnel won't hold!"

They crawled desperately toward the faint light visible ahead.

"I see the exit!" Miriam cried.

Hope surged through everyone.

Suddenly...

Another explosion.

A massive concrete slab crashed into the tunnel.

"Marco!" Devon screamed.

The falling debris knocked Marco backward.

A concrete pillar pinned his left shoulder against the tunnel wall.

"Go!" Marco ordered.

"I'm stuck."

"No!" Devon crawled back toward him.

"Leave!"

"I'm not leaving you."

"That's an order."

"I'm not one of your soldiers."

"Devon..."

"No!"

Ignoring the burning pain in his arms, Devon pushed against the broken concrete.

It didn't move.

"Luca! Help me!"

Luca immediately crawled back.

Together they strained against the debris.

"Again!"

"Push!"

The concrete shifted slightly.

"One more time!"

"Everyone together!"

Benjamin, despite his injured leg, joined them.

Miriam did the same.

With one final desperate effort...

The massive slab rolled aside.

Marco pulled himself free.

"Move!"

They sprinted toward the tunnel exit.

The moment they emerged into the cold night air...

The steel mill exploded.

A gigantic fireball erupted into the sky.

The shockwave threw everyone several feet across the ground.

Windows shattered for miles.

Flames consumed the entire building within seconds.

Devon slowly sat up, coughing violently.

His ears rang from the blast.

He looked around frantically.

"Marco?"

Several feet away, Marco lay unconscious on the grass.

Blood soaked through the bandages on his shoulder.

"Marco!" Devon shouted.

He rushed to his side and gently lifted his head.

"Open your eyes... please."

There was no response.

"Boss!" Luca ran over.

He checked Marco's pulse.

His expression immediately changed.

"We need a medic! Now!"

"What's wrong?" Devon demanded.

Luca looked at him gravely.

"The explosion reopened his gunshot wound..."

"He's losing too much blood."

"If we don't get him to surgery immediately..."

"Marco won't survive the night."