The elevator doors slid open with a cold metallic hiss.
Dimitri stepped out first, gun raised, every muscle in his body coiled tight. Natalia followed closely, her own weapon steady in her grip despite the storm inside her chest.
The alarm's sharp blare echoed through the underground security floor, red lights pulsing across the walls like a heartbeat gone wild.
Yuri was already there, barking orders to the guards positioned at the monitors.
"Report," Dimitri commanded, his voice low and lethal.
A young guard turned, pale and trembling. "Boss, someone crossed the eastern perimeter fence. We picked up movement of one figure, moving fast. Too fast."
Dimitri's eyes narrowed. "Too fast?"
"Like they… knew the timing of the patrol rotations," the guard whispered.
Natalia felt her stomach twist.
Inside information.
Someone who knew Volkov Tower's patterns.
She glanced at Dimitri. The same realization flickered in his eyes.
