The sharp, echoing click of the rifle safety mechanism cutting through Elsa's frozen scream left the small room in absolute silence. Erica stood unyielding at the corner of the concrete wall, her grip rock solid as she pressed the cold muzzle of the weapon firmly into the scientist's temple. Elsa stopped breathing for a second, her jaw tightly clenched while her eyes wide with a mixture of terror and lingering corporate defiance stared blankly ahead. Delon felt a sudden drop in the temperature of the room, his boots sliding forward on the dusty floor as he reacted to the lethal proximity of the weapon.
"Erica, lower the rifle right now," Delon commanded, his hand reaching out to firmly grasp her rigid forearm before her finger could tighten around the curved metal trigger. "This is a re
