I shielded my eyes with my hand, squinting against the glare.

Beside me, my father shivered violently, his fingers clutching the sleeve of my coat.

“Don’t move,” Trevor snarled, his voice shaking as he backed toward the brick wall.

He raised his pistol, aiming it blindly into the bright white light.

A red laser dot appeared on Trevor’s chest, right over his heart.

Two more red dots danced across the foreheads of his remaining guards.

“Drop the weapon, Trevor,” Charles said, his voice calm and cold.

“You are outnumbered, and your perimeter is gone.”

From the shadows of the courtyard, five men in dark tactical gear emerged.

They moved in perfect silence, their boots crunching softly on the frozen snow.

One of the guards beside Trevor panicked and reached for his holster.

A loud pop echoed through the courtyard.

The guard screamed, dropping his rifle as he fell into the snow, clutching his leg.

“I won’t ask again,” the lead tactical officer said, his rifle raised.

Trevor looked at the red dot on his chest, then at his fallen guard.

His face turned pale in the moonlight.