Chapter 4 - The Blackout
The high-pitched whine of the backup generator kicked in three seconds later, filling the room with the faint, amber glow of emergency wall sconces.
"Grace! Get down!" Mason roared, stepping between the hospital bed and the doorway.
The double glass doors burst open.
A tall figure wearing a dark medical scrub suit and a blue surgical mask stepped inside. In his hand was a suppressed nine-millimeter pistol fitted with a laser sight. The red beam swept across the room, locking directly onto Adrian’s chest.
"Move, Reed!" the intruder barked, his voice muffled by the mask.
Mason didn't hesitate. He raised his weapon and fired two rapid shots.
THWIP! THWIP!
The intruder ducked behind the doorframe, the bullets shattering the glass panel above his head. Shards of safety glass rained down onto the floor like heavy hail.
Grace dropped to her knees beside the bed, grabbing Lily and pulling the child beneath her body, shielding her small frame with her own torso.
"Mama!" Lily whimpered, burying her face into Grace’s apron.
"Shh! Stay down, baby! Stay quiet!" Grace whispered furiously, her heart hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird.
Outside in the hallway, heavy shouting and rapid gunfire erupted as Mason’s remaining guards engaged two more intruders near the elevator bank.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
The intruder in the scrub suit stepped back into the doorway, aiming his weapon straight at Grace’s back as she lay over her child.
"Out of the way, lady," the man growled, his finger tightening on the trigger.
Before he could fire, a heavy, pale hand shot out from the hospital bed.
Adrian Vale’s eyes opened—dark, blazing, and filled with an ancient, murderous fury.
Despite the surgical incision across his abdomen, despite the heavy sedatives flowing through his bloodstream, Adrian reached out, grabbed the shooter’s wrist, and twisted it with terrifying, mechanical force.
CRACK!
The shooter shrieked in agony as his wrist snapped backward. The suppressed pistol clattered onto the floor tiles.
Adrian didn't stop. He pulled the man down onto the bed, slammed his heavy elbow directly into the intruder's jaw, and drove him face-first into the metal bed rail.
The assassin slumped to the floor, unconscious and bleeding profusely from his nose.
Adrian swung his legs over the edge of the bed, ripping the IV lines from his arm without blinking. He stood up, his tall, imposing figure towering over the room, though his face was slick with cold sweat and his breathing came in sharp, ragged gasps.
Mason rushed back into the room, his pistol raised, before stopping in absolute shock as he saw his boss standing upright.
"Adrian!" Mason gasped. "You shouldn't be moving!"
Adrian ignored him. His dark eyes swept across the room, stepping over the fallen assassin, until his gaze landed on Grace kneeling on the floor, holding her daughter tight.
Adrian dropped to one knee beside them. His large, calloused hand gently touched Grace’s shoulder.
"Grace," Adrian’s voice was a rough, gravelly rasp. "Are you hit? Is Lily hurt?"
Grace looked up, tears overflowing her eyes as she saw him awake. "We're okay... Adrian, you're bleeding through your bandages!"
"I don't care about the bandages," Adrian said softly, reaching out to gently cup Lily’s cheek with his thumb.
Lily looked up from her mother's chest, her tiny fingers reaching out to touch his hand.
"Uncle Adrian," Lily whispered, her voice trembling. "Your hand smells like cold iron."
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Adrian gave a faint, tired smile, his eyes filled with immense warmth as he looked at the child.
"That's just the fight, little one," Adrian whispered. "It's over now."
