Jack dashed forward and grabbed Alice's trembling arms, holding her steady to prevent any panicked movements that could worsen the situation. He turned to the tense security guards and barked,
"Lower your weapons! Put them down! She's one of us!"
Then, spinning around, he yelled at Clay and the pregnant Stella behind him, "Take your wife and get out of here!"
"Jack, no!" Despite being utterly terrified and sobbing uncontrollably, Alice hadn't lost her wits.
"You need to lock down the building immediately! They said if they see anyone entering or leaving, especially bomb squad personnel, they'll detonate the explosives!"
Jack froze for a moment, then nodded sharply. He pointed at one of the guards. "You, holster your weapon! Clear the lobby and evacuate everyone from the second and third floors to the underground parking garage. Notify your superiors to seal all entrances and exits to this building—right now!"
He glanced at the explosive collar around Alice's neck. Two brick-shaped packages of C4 were strapped to both her chest and back—the same type of explosives he had seen the night before at the warehouse.
If each brick weighed a pound, that totaled 4 pounds. The explosive power would be enough to level the entire lobby and even cause structural damage to the building.
For comparison, the explosives that injured an ESU officer and destroyed an entire warehouse last night amounted to a quarter of this amount—just one pound of C4.
"Is the bomb squad even available?" Jack asked Aubrey, who had been frantically making calls.
Aubrey set down his phone, his face pale. "None. We sent every single bomb expert out last night. Some are still at the scene on standby, and the rest are resting."
Grabbing a chair from behind the reception desk, Aubrey gently helped Alice sit down. "Alright, let's all calm down. We'll figure something out. There's still time, right, Jack?"
Jack glanced at the bright red timer on the collar's display, which even had a small keypad attached. "Yeah, we'll handle it. We've got about 28 minutes."
Alice shuddered, looking like she might faint. Jack quickly shifted the conversation to gather information.
"Alice, stay with me. You're in luck—we've got two people here who are even more experienced than the bomb squad. Start from the beginning. What happened? Who put this thing on you?"
As Jack spoke, Aubrey demonstrated deep breathing exercises to help calm her down.
"Breathe in… out… in…"
Following his lead, Alice's chest heaved a few times as some color returned to her pale face. Her voice, though shaky, steadied as she explained.
"I… I got off the subway at Chambers Street. I had just climbed the stairs and was about to swipe my card when someone came up behind me and pressed a gun to my back."
"What did they look like?" Aubrey asked quickly.
"I… I don't know. I was too scared to turn around," Alice said, tears welling up again, smudging her eyeliner into black streaks on her cheeks.
"They told me to keep walking and not to look back, or they'd shoot me." Her voice carried a tinge of guilt now.
"Am I useless? He forced me into a black SUV and told me to close my eyes, or he'd kill me. I know I should've kept my eyes open and memorized something, but I was too terrified…"
Jack opened his mouth to speak, but Aubrey beat him to it. "No, no, you did exactly the right thing. That's why you're still alive. Got it?"
"What happened next?" Jack prompted.
"They blindfolded me and put this thing on my neck. Then they said it was a bomb and told me to walk into the lobby and tell you to release someone named Vargas within half an hour."
Alice seemed to steady further when she heard the sound of Dana Morge's heels clicking down the stairs. The director's familiar presence gave her a sliver of hope.
"Director, don't come any closer! It's dangerous!" Alice warned, trying to stay composed.
Dana, however, was calm as ever. "Alice, you're not a full FBI agent, but you're one of us. Your life is just as important as anyone else's here."
Turning to Jack, she said, "If the bomb squad can't get in, it seems you're our only option. Fortunately, their backup equipment is still here—someone's already bringing it down."
Alice glanced nervously between Jack and Aubrey. She hesitated before clutching Aubrey's hand tightly. "Jack said there were two bomb experts here. Who's the other one?"
"Uh…" Aubrey looked sheepish. "I'm more of a Wall Street geek. I had some basic explosives training at Quantico, but I wouldn't call myself an expert."
Jack's gaze shifted behind Alice. Clay Spenser was approaching quickly after ensuring Stella was safe. "The other expert is him," Jack said, motioning toward Clay.
"How's Stella?" Jack asked.
Clay grinned. "She's fine. At first, she thought this was some sort of surprise training exercise you arranged. She just figured it out. I found a couple of kind women to look after her."
"Clay Spenser, former SEAL," Jack introduced briefly. Dana immediately grasped the implication and extended her hand to Clay.
"Mr. Spenser, it's unfortunate to meet under these circumstances, but we're in a critical situation. I can't give you a direct order, but—"
Clay cut her off with a smile. "It's an honor to help. Consider this my interview. How's that?"
As they spoke, Jack glanced around. He couldn't help but notice the absurd theatricality of the moment. Every prospective member of his new task force—except for the two women on his shortlist—was here.
If this bomb detonated, it would wipe out the fledgling team in one fell swoop. Four pounds of C4 wouldn't just obliterate everyone present; it would leave no survivors, not even Jack, despite his knack for surviving the impossible.
And for once, even he couldn't be certain he'd make it out alive.
(End of Chapter)
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