The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

With a creased map in hand, Percival trekked alongside Soren to a nearby abandoned

mine.

At the mine’s entrance, they stumbled upon a covert mark of White Tiger etched into the

rock face, its meaning unclear yet undeniably significant. And there, scattered nearby, lay

a cache of critical documents belonging to CK.

“Base, this is Soren. We’ve found the mark,” Soren hollered into his headset.

A different voice crackled back, not Micah’s as expected, but that of the HQ commander.

“Copy that. Proceed underground.”

Exchanging a glance, Percival and Soren strapped on their oxygen masks and descended

into the bowels of the earth.

Markers bearing White Tiger’s emblem appeared sporadically along the mine’s tunnels—

faded, but a trail they could follow nonetheless.

As they ventured deeper, the air grew thin, and a faint, metallic scent of blood wafted

from the depths.

Suddenly, a clod of earth tumbled from directly above Percival.

“Run!” Percival barked, his eyes dark with urgency.

With lightning reflexes, Soren signaled to the team behind them, and the third squad

retreated in a disciplined dash toward the exit.

Then, a thunderous collapse echoed from behind Soren.

“Captain!” He yelled.

“Get out of here. That’s an order!” Percival’s voice crackled through the headset as Soren

could only glimpse his silhouette through the narrowing gaps in the debris.

“Captain, I’ll get you out!” Soren halted along with a few others.

Percival’s voice was icy. “Get lost. After you’re out, find Vivienne!”

Leopold and Thomas, sensing the gravity of the situation, called out, “Captain, report your

status!”

“Mine… Collapse… Get out…”

Percival’s voice faded into static.

Ignoring the danger, Leopold and Thomas led their teams back toward Percival’s last

known location. However, before they could get close, a helicopter buzzed overhead,

raining down bullets like a hailstorm.

Leopold and Thomas fought back while retreating to HQ. But unfamiliar with the terrain,

the front squad often stumbled into collapsing tunnels, with some members falling into the

abyss.

Regrouping with Thomas, Leopold boosted their firepower and rescued the wounded.

Back at HQ, Micah shouted into the mic, “Wolf, unidentified forces are attacking from

above. Evacuate now!”

In the mine, Percival tossed aside his useless headset, shouting to Soren, “Comms are

jammed. There’s a signal blocker somewhere. Go support Husky.”

Hearing the battle above, Soren knew staying meant certain death for all.

The only chance was to escape and return with reinforcements for Percival.

Tears streaming, Soren vowed, “Captain, wait for my return.”

They narrowly escaped the mine, though not without injuries—broken limbs and, for

Soren, a gashed head.

Once outside, his headset crackled back to life with Micah’s voice urging Wolf to pull back.

Gritting his teeth, Soren radioed, “HQ, Wolf’s comms are down. Send me the coordinates

of the hostile fire. Now!”

There was no time to consider the consequences. They had to down the helicopters to cut

off the attack and minimize casualties.

Micah cursed and relayed the information.

The three squads swiftly ended the fight, downing two helicopters, while the third

vanished.

Regrouped at the rendezvous point, with casualties among them, they awaited further

orders.

Soren, his head hastily bandaged, relayed Percival’s location to Leopold, insisting they had

to go back.

“Damn it!” Leopold took two rifles from the other members and strapped them on, his

voice a mix of anger and resolve. “First squad, anyone who can still move, on me.”

Thomas echoed the sentiment. “Second squad, with me.”

As Soren turned to follow, dizziness from blood loss nearly overcame him.

Thomas caught him. “Go back to report and heal. Or the captain will have your hide.”

Micah, limping with a cane, stormed over, nearly collapsing. “Everyone, back to base

now!”

“But our captain is still in there!” Leopold roared, defiance written across his face.

Percival was not only his captain but his dear friend who grew up with him. There was no

way he would let Percival be buried down there without doing anything.

Micah knew the stakes but stood firm. “Look at your men. They’re heavily wounded, and

their lives matter, too. Back to base, that’s an order!”

He shoved Leopold aside and took Soren from Thomas. “Get him treated, then document

everything about the mine. Hand it to me.”

The radio operator approached with urgent news. “Deputy director, it’s the HQ

commander.”

Micah grabbed the handset. “This is Micah.”

“Who authorized this operation? I told you to wait for satellite confirmation before

proceeding. Do you not understand ‘stand by’?”

Soren overheard the loud exchange.

“We followed orders from HQ to enter the mine. When were we told to stand by?” Soren

interjected.

After a pause, an enraged voice came from the other side, “Bullshit! I’ve been shouting

my throat dry, ordering an evacuation!”

Realization struck Micah. “Check the comms for viruses, now!”

The commander at HQ quickly realized it, too, and yelled for his men to check the system.

As expected, both HQ and the field team discovered their systems had been infected with

malware.

“Damn it!” Micah kicked the truck in frustration. This was the first time HQ had been so

thoroughly played.

White Tiger sure knew how to stir the pot.

Micah took charge quickly, assigning some of his team to transport the injured to the

hospital. Before Soren was hoisted onto a stretcher, he grabbed Leopold’s coat and

rasped, “The captain said to notify Vivienne once I’m out.”

“Got it,” Leopold nodded, fishing his phone out of his pocket and dialing Vivienne’s

number.

Vivienne picked up almost immediately, her first words sharp and to the point, “Send me

your location.”

Leopold blinked, “Vivienne, where are you?”

“I’m en route to Weststart City,” she replied, her engine humming in the background. “Just

send me your exact coordinates. I’ll be there in five minutes.”Books Chapters Are Daily

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Leopold was stunned. Vivienne had known trouble was brewing even before being notified

and was already on her way!

“Okay,” Leopold said, glancing at Micah but deciding against reporting in. He texted their

location to Vivienne.

To hell with the consequences – Percival’s life was at stake!

True to her word, five minutes later, Vivienne’s car pulled up not far from the command

vehicle.

Anna and Griffin stepped out with her, lugging a heavy-looking case between them.

Micah paused for a moment upon seeing Vivienne, then quickly snapped to, shooting a

warning glare at Leopold, who was about to step forward in greeting.

Leopold pretended not to notice the warning and met her with a composed stride.

“Vivienne, Percival’s trapped under the mine. We just can’t get a read on the situation

inside,” he said, briefly outlining the dilemma.

Vivienne frowned slightly – she had suspected as much about the mine.

“Give me the coordinates,” she said, flipping open her laptop and rapidly tapping the keys.

The satellite imagery of Weststart City popped up on the big screen.

Before Leopold could respond, Micah jabbed him in the shin with his cane, blocking him.

“Vivienne, are you sure you can safely extract Percival?”

Just then, a voice crackled over the radio, “Micah, no unauthorized personnel are allowed

to interfere with the operation. That’s the rule!”

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