Chapter 4: The First Shot

The gunshot echoed through the hospital room.

Glass exploded across the floor.

Ava instinctively threw herself over the patient as another bullet tore through the headboard.

The masked gunman cursed.

“Damn it.”

He hadn’t expected anyone to shield the man.

“Get down!” Ava screamed.

The patient groaned in pain, clutching the sheets as blood seeped through the bandages on his shoulder.

The first bullet had grazed him.

Outside, nurses screamed.

Doctors ran in every direction.

The emergency lights bathed the corridor in an eerie red glow.

The gunman raised his pistol again.

This time, he aimed directly at Ava.

She froze.

Everything around her slowed.

She stared into the dark barrel of the gun, convinced these were the last seconds of her life.

Before the trigger could be pulled, someone tackled the shooter from behind.

Damien.

The two men crashed into a tray of medical equipment.

Metal instruments scattered across the floor.

The pistol slid beneath the hospital bed.

“Run!” Damien shouted.

Ava didn’t hesitate.

She grabbed the patient’s wheelchair parked against the wall.

“Can you stand?”

The man winced.

“Barely.”

“Then lean on me.”

He wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

Despite his injuries, he was surprisingly heavy.

She struggled toward the hallway.

Victoria appeared outside the room.

“Ava!”

“Help me!”

Victoria rushed over without asking questions.

Together they supported the injured man as alarms continued blaring throughout the hospital.

“What happened?” Victoria asked.

“Someone tried to kill him.”

Victoria’s eyes widened.

“What?”

“We have to get him somewhere safe.”

Behind them came another gunshot.

Bang!

Ava turned.

Damien ducked just in time as another masked man appeared at the end of the corridor.

There wasn’t only one assassin.

There were two.

⸻

The hospital erupted into panic.

Patients were wheeled into supply rooms.

Visitors hid beneath benches.

Security guards shouted orders over their radios.

“This is hospital security! Lock down every exit!”

The announcement echoed through the building.

Ava’s heart pounded.

“They’re going to trap us.”

The injured man shook his head.

“No…”

His breathing became labored.

“They’re not here for everyone.”

“They’re here for me.”

Victoria glanced around the corridor.

“Who are they?”

The man looked terrified.

“I don’t know their names.”

“But I know who sent them.”

Ava leaned closer.

“Tell me.”

He opened his mouth—

A loud crash interrupted him.

The elevator doors burst open.

Three more men dressed in black stepped out.

Each carried a handgun fitted with silencers.

Victoria gasped.

“Oh my God…”

“They’ve blocked the elevators.”

Damien appeared around the corner, breathing heavily.

“We need another way out.”

He spotted the new attackers and swore under his breath.

“There are too many.”

“Who are they?” Ava demanded.

“I don’t know.”

“You do.”

Damien looked away.

“This isn’t the place.”

“People are trying to kill us!”

“I know!”

“Then start talking!”

For a moment, Damien remained silent.

Finally he said quietly,

“This has something to do with my father’s company.”

Ava frowned.

“Cross Holdings?”

He nodded.

“My father made enemies long before Ethan took over.”

“What kind of enemies?”

“The kind that don’t leave witnesses.”

Another bullet struck the wall beside them.

Concrete dust filled the air.

“Move!” Damien shouted.

They ran.

⸻

At the far end of the corridor, Dr. Carter waved frantically.

“This way!”

She unlocked a heavy steel door.

“It leads to the old surgical wing.”

Ava helped the injured man through first.

Victoria followed.

Damien slammed the door shut behind them.

For a few seconds, silence returned.

Everyone struggled to catch their breath.

The injured man collapsed into a chair.

His face had turned pale.

Blood continued soaking through the fresh bandages.

“He needs surgery,” Dr. Carter said.

“He won’t survive much longer without it.”

The man grabbed Ava’s hand before anyone could move him.

“You have to listen.”

“I’m listening.”

“My name…”

He stopped, wincing in pain.

“My name is Lucas.”

Ava nodded.

“Lucas.”

“I worked for Ethan.”

“As what?”

“His pilot.”

Everyone froze.

Damien stared at him.

“You were on the plane?”

Lucas nodded weakly.

“There were four of us.”

“The captain.”

“Myself.”

“Mr. Cross.”

“And…”

He swallowed.

“The man who caused the crash.”

Ava’s eyes widened.

“What?”

Lucas’s breathing quickened.

“It wasn’t mechanical failure.”

“It wasn’t weather.”

“He planted a bomb before takeoff.”

Victoria covered her mouth.

“Who?”

Lucas looked directly at Damien.

“He worked for someone inside Cross Holdings.”

The room fell silent.

Damien’s face lost all color.

“No…”

Lucas nodded.

“I heard them talking before we boarded.”

“They said…”

His voice cracked.

“They said Ethan knew too much.”

Ava’s heart raced.

“Knew what?”

Lucas struggled to answer.

Before he could speak, the lights flickered again.

Dr. Carter looked toward the ceiling.

“That’s impossible.”

“What is?”

“The backup generator just failed.”

Darkness swallowed the room.

Only emergency exit signs remained glowing.

Then…

Footsteps.

Slow.

Deliberate.

Getting closer.

Someone was on the other side of the steel door.

Three soft knocks echoed through the room.

Knock.

Knock.

Knock.

A deep male voice spoke from outside.

“I know you’re in there.”

No one moved.

The stranger chuckled.

“Open the door.”

Silence.

Then he calmly added,

“Or I’ll start killing everyone else in this hospital until you do.”