Chapter 44 - The Fire ProtocolThe thick smoke from the burning cash immediately choked the small intake vent.
Within seconds, the vault’s automated fire suppression system engaged. But in an enclosed, highly secure environment designed to protect paper assets, the system didn't use water.
It used Halon gas.
A deafening alarm blared through the basement as heavy nozzles in the ceiling began violently discharging the thick, oxygen-depleting chemical gas.
"No!" Hector roared, raising his pistol and firing wildly into the vault.
Bullets sparked against the steel walls, missing Mateo as he threw himself flat against the floor, covering his mouth and nose with his jacket.
The Halon gas filled the room instantly, a thick, blinding white fog that immediately sucked the breathable air from the vault.
Hector, standing on the stairs just outside the vault door, began to choke. He stumbled backward, coughing violently, dropping his pistol as his lungs screamed for oxygen.
Mateo knew he only had seconds before the gas suffocated him completely.
He scrambled across the floor, staying as low as physically possible where a thin layer of residual oxygen remained. He grabbed Hector's dropped pistol, crawled out of the vault, and kicked the heavy steel door shut behind him, sealing the remaining Halon gas inside.
He stood up, gasping for the clean air in the hallway.
Hector was on his hands and knees on the stairs, violently retching, his eyes bloodshot and wide with panic.
Mateo aimed the pistol directly at the cartel boss's head.
"It's over, Hector," Mateo gasped, his finger tightening on the trigger.
Hector looked up, offering a sickening, bloody smile.
"You won't shoot me, Mateo. You're a father. Not a killer."
Mateo’s hands shook. He looked at the man who had ordered his home burned, who had threatened his children. The knight had the dragon at his mercy. All he had to do was pull the trigger.
Suddenly, a massive explosion rocked the foundation of the house. The entire basement shuddered, dust falling from the ceiling.
"Mateo!" Silva’s voice roared through the radio, frantic and breathless. "The local police just arrived! They are on Hector's payroll! I am entirely surrounded. Get out of there now!"
Mateo looked at Hector, then lowered the gun.
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"I am not a killer," Mateo said coldly. "But I have the book."
Mateo turned and sprinted back down the hallway, toward the rear utility exit, leaving Hector Vargas choking in the dark.
