Chapter 13 - A Queen’s Gambit
The tension in the air was thick enough to choke on.
Gunther’s men had their weapons raised, but they were hopelessly outnumbered.
Lorenzo stood confidently in the open, knowing he held the absolute advantage.
"You have two choices, Gunther," Lorenzo offered generously.
"You surrender the ports to me, and I let you walk away to play house with your pretty little wife."
"Or, we kill everyone here and I take the ports anyway."
Gunther did not hesitate.
He calculated the angles, the cover, and the distance to the SUV.
He was prepared to die on this pier to ensure Kayla made it out alive.
"Victor," Gunther whispered over his shoulder, his voice completely dead.
"When I move, you put her in the car and you do not stop driving."
Kayla heard the finality in his voice and felt a sudden, fierce surge of adrenaline.
She was not going to let the man she loved sacrifice himself.
She noticed a massive control panel on the side of the crane directly above Lorenzo’s vehicles.
She had spent weeks memorizing the operational blueprints of the port.
Kayla stepped out from behind Gunther’s broad back, ignoring his frantic grab for her arm.
"Lorenzo!" Kayla shouted, her voice ringing clear and authoritative over the docks.
Lorenzo looked at her, clearly amused by her sudden boldness.
"The queen speaks," he mocked.
Kayla reached into her designer purse and pulled out a small, remote frequency disruptor.
She had designed it to override the port's automated crane systems for emergency lockdowns.
"You think you are standing on solid ground," Kayla said coldly.
"But this is our city."
She pressed the heavy red button in the center of the device.
The massive industrial crane above Lorenzo whirred to life with a deafening mechanical roar.
The electromagnetic lock on the crane released instantly.
A ten-ton shipping container dropped from the sky, crashing directly onto Lorenzo’s front two SUVs.
The impact shook the entire pier, crushing the vehicles into flat, burning metal and throwing Lorenzo to the concrete.
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The Italians panicked, scattering in absolute chaos.
"Now!" Gunther roared.
