Chapter 5: The Guard on the Payroll
The digital clock on the corridor wall clicked to 2:00 AM. The air inside the block was freezing now, the heat having been turned down by the night staff to save money.
Leo stood up from his cot, his movements silent as a shadow. He walked over to the cell door, his fingers sliding through the iron bars to reach the mechanical lock mechanism. Using a thin piece of metal wire he had stripped from the cot frame earlier, he twisted the internal pins with mathematical precision.
CLICK.
The heavy steel gate slid open just two inches, making almost no sound. Leo stepped out onto the tier, his bare feet pressed against the cold concrete floor. He moved down the corridor, keeping his body flat against the shadows of the empty cells.
He reached the end of Tier 3, where a red metal fire extinguisher box was built into the brick wall. He pulled the glass door open gently. Taped to the back of the heavy red cylinder was a sleek, black plastic master keycard—Officer Miller’s authorization pass.
"Don't move, Vance," a voice hissed from the dark hallway behind him.
Leo didn't flinch. He slowly turned around, keeping his hands open at his sides. Standing five feet away was Officer Miller himself, wearing his blue uniform, holding a heavy duty taser gun with a shaking hand. His face was covered in a thick layer of nervous sweat, his eyes wide with fear.
"Officer Miller," Leo said, his voice smooth and polite. "I believe you left something for me."
"I... I shouldn't be doing this," Miller stammered, his voice cracking in the quiet corridor. "If Victor finds out I helped you, he will stop the medical payments for my girl. She won't survive another month without that treatment, Leo. You don't know what kind of monster your brother is. He owns this city."
"I know exactly what he is, Miller," Leo said, taking a slow, deliberate step forward. He didn't rush the guard; his voice was a solid, comforting anchor. "He’s a man who uses your love for your daughter as a chain to keep you in his dirt. But that chain ends tonight. My team on the outside has already transferred two hundred thousand dollars into a secure trust fund for your daughter’s operation. Her medical bills are paid for the next three years, regardless of what happens to Victor Vance."
Miller’s jaw dropped in absolute shock. The taser gun began to lower slightly. "You... you did that? How? You're an inmate!"
"I have friends in high places, Miller," Leo said, stepping closer, gently removing the taser from the guard's trembling fingers and sliding the black keycard into his pocket. "Now, you need to leave this block. Go to the security locker, punch out of your shift, and go home to your family. Don't look back. The fourth floor is about to become a warzone."
"The fourth floor is already a warzone, Leo," Miller whispered, his face pale as he backed away toward the exit door. "Victor brought in eight private contractors from the city yesterday. They aren't normal guards. They are professional mercs wearing uniforms. They have automatic weapons hidden in the laundry crates. They’re waiting for you."
"Good," Leo said, a cold, humorless smile appearing on his lips for the first time. "It saves me the trouble of hunting them down down town."
Miller turned and ran down the hallway, hitting the exit button and disappearing through the heavy steel doors.
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Leo turned his attention to the private executive elevator located at the end of the corridor—the one that led directly to the VIP suites on the fourth floor. He slid the black keycard through the digital reader. The light flashed a bright, cheerful green, and the elevator doors slid open with a soft, hydraulic sigh.
Leo stepped inside, the doors closing behind him, isolating him in the quiet, carpeted cabin as it began to ascend toward the final confrontation.
