Ron Donaldo: Rise Of The Apex Don

Chapter 23

Mr. Henderson and Mrs. Lee screamed at the top of their lungs, crawling frantically toward the corners of the room. The rich people who thought they owned the world were now just terrified animals hiding in a crossfire. 

In Marcus’s office, the four soldiers who had come to kill him turned around to run back and help their team. 

Before they could leave the office, the ceiling tiles above them exploded. 

Jax dropped down from the hidden ventilation shaft. He landed directly on top of two of the soldiers. The sheer weight of the giant man crushed them to the floor. 

The other two soldiers raised their guns to shoot Jax. 

Jax moved faster than a man his size should be able to move. He grabbed the barrel of the first gun, twisting it upward. He drove his massive knee into the soldier's stomach. The man folded in half. Jax grabbed him by the tactical vest and threw him straight through the glass wall of the office, out into the hallway. 

The last soldier fired his gun at Jax. The bullets hit Jax’s heavy black armor, sparking brightly, but they did not stop the giant. Jax stepped forward and delivered a single, devastating punch to the soldier's helmet. The soldier went completely limp and fell to the floor. 

Marcus watched the whole thing from under his desk. He could not believe his eyes. Ron’s men were fighting like unstoppable monsters to save him. 

The heavy gunfire in the boardroom slowly stopped. The Iron Legion had completely overwhelmed the clean-up crew. Using their superior numbers and brutal hand-to-hand fighting skills, the ex-convicts from The Pit had beaten the elite mercenaries into the ground. 

General Vance stood in the middle of the ruined boardroom. He held the leader of the clean-up crew by the neck, lifting him entirely off the floor. 

"Tell your boss he sent boys to fight men," General Vance growled. He threw the leader hard against the wall. The leader slid down, unconscious. 

The room was totally destroyed. The wind howled through the broken windows. Papers flew in circles in the air. 

Then, the heavy oak doors at the end of the hallway opened. 

The Iron Legion soldiers instantly stopped moving. They stood perfectly still and parted to make a wide path. 

Ron Donaldo walked into the ninetieth floor. 

He wore his sharp black suit. His hands were in his pockets. He walked slowly, his polished black shoes crunching on the broken glass. He did not look at the tied-up mercenaries on the floor. He did not look at the crying board members. 

He was the absolute center of power in the room. He was the eye of the storm. 

Ron walked straight into Marcus’s destroyed office. He looked at the silver box with the GPS trackers still sitting on the desk. Then, he looked under the desk. 

"Get up, Marcus," Ron said. His voice was incredibly calm. 

Marcus scrambled out from under the desk. He was a complete mess. His pants were wet. His face was covered in tears and dust. He fell to his knees in front of Ron. 

"Ron!" Marcus cried, grabbing the bottom of Ron’s expensive jacket. "You saved me! Thank you! Thank you! You saved my life!"

Ron’s eyes flashed with deep, cold anger. He reached down and grabbed Marcus by his expensive silk tie. He lifted Marcus up onto his feet and slammed him hard against the wall. 

"Do not ever thank me," Ron whispered. His face was only inches from Marcus’s face. "I did not save you because you are my friend. I did not save you because I forgive you. I saved you because you are my witness. You still owe me a confession, Marcus. And you are going to give it to me right now."

Marcus nodded his head as fast as he could. "Yes! Yes! I will tell them everything! I will tell the FBI about the Mayor! I will tell them about The Director! Just keep me safe!"

Ron let go of the tie. Marcus slumped against the wall, taking deep, shaking breaths. 

"General Vance," Ron called out loudly. 

The huge General stepped into the office. "Yes, my King?"

"Take Mr. Thorne," Ron ordered. "Put him in a secure truck. Call the local news stations. Tell them we have a special broadcast in one hour."

"Yes, Sir," General Vance said. He grabbed Marcus by the arm and pulled him away. 

Ron turned to look at the main boardroom. He wanted to see the look on Theresa’s face. He wanted to see his ex-wife realize that her empire was finally dead. 

But as Ron looked across the ruined room, his eyes narrowed. 

Mr. Henderson was there, crying in a corner. Mrs. Lee was there, shaking. The other board members were all on the floor. 

But Theresa Sterling was missing. 

"Where is she?" Ron demanded. His voice was suddenly sharp and dangerous. 

General Vance looked around quickly. "Sir, she was right here! She was hiding in the back of the room!"

Ron walked quickly to the back of the boardroom. He saw a small door that led to the emergency stairwell. The door was slightly open. 

Suddenly, a loud, heavy sound echoed from outside the broken windows. 

Whop. Whop. Whop. Whop. 

It was the sound of a large helicopter. 

Ron ran to the edge of the broken window and looked out. 

Hovering fifty feet away from the side of the building was a sleek, black helicopter. There were no numbers or logos on the side of it. 

Standing in the open side door of the helicopter was a man wearing a dark suit. Next to him stood Theresa Sterling. 

Theresa looked terrified, but as she saw Ron standing in the broken window of the burning building, her expression changed. She grabbed the edge of the helicopter door. She looked directly into Ron’s eyes, and she smiled. 

It was a cold, cruel, surviving smile. She had realized that The Director needed her. She knew the secret bank accounts. She knew the passcodes. She had traded her husband, her company, and her board of directors just to save her own life. She was escaping again.