Chapter 7 - BLACKOUT
I sprinted past the shocked billionaires and security guards. I didn't head for the stage. I headed for the service corridor behind the ballroom. I knew this building's nervous system better than anyone. I knew where the arteries were.
"Higgins!" I yelled into the radio. "Forget the soundboard! Go to the breaker room on Sub-Level 2! I'm going to the primary junction!"
I burst into the maintenance closet behind the stage. The music and strobe lights were vibrating through the walls, a physical assault. I grabbed my heavy-duty insulated pliers. There was a reinforced electrical panel that fed the entire AV system for the ballroom. It was padlocked.
I didn't have the key for this specific lock. I didn't care. I grabbed a fire extinguisher from the wall and smashed it against the padlock once, twice, three times until the cheap metal gave way. I ripped the panel open.
Inside was a nest of high-voltage wires.
"Higgins, kill the main feed to Zone A on my mark!" I shouted.
"Dale, that'll blow the secondary fuses!"
"Do it!"
I grabbed the heavy red main line feeding the stage.
"Three... two... one... NOW!"
Higgins threw the switch downstairs just as I clamped my pliers onto the manual override bypass, ripping the connection apart.
Sparks showered over me. A loud CRACK echoed through the walls.
And then, absolute darkness.
The strobes died. The screeching speakers cut out instantly. The massive LED wall went black. The only light left in the cavernous ballroom was the soft, warm glow of the emergency exit signs.
A collective gasp went up from the crowd, followed by an eerie, sudden silence.
I dropped the pliers, my heart hammering in my chest, and ran back out into the ballroom. In the dim light, people were turning on their phone flashlights. I pushed my way through the crowd of confused elites.
"Out of the way! Move!" I bellowed.
I reached the VIP table. Vivian was still on the floor, holding Eli tight. But the screaming had stopped. The sudden, absolute sensory deprivation of the blackout had acted like a reset switch. The assault was over.
I knelt beside them. I reached into my pocket, pulled out a small, glow-in-the-dark star—one I had taken from Danny’s old room—and handed it to Eli.
In the darkness, the plastic star gave off a soft, green, calming light. Eli took it. He focused on the gentle glow. His breathing slowed. He looked at me, and in the dim light, he gave a tiny, almost imperceptible nod.
"Are you okay?" I whispered to Vivian.
She looked up at me, trembling but fierce. "I'm going to destroy him."
Suddenly, the backup generators kicked in, flooding the room with standard, non-strobe lighting. Richard was standing on the stage, his microphone dead, looking furious that his trap had been short-circuited.
May you like
"Ladies and gentlemen," Vivian said, standing up smoothly, brushing off her gown. She didn't look broken. She looked like a queen who had just survived an assassination attempt. "Apologies for the technical difficulties. It seems my ex-husband's event planners are as incompetent as his business strategies."
The crowd chuckled nervously. The tide had turned. But Richard wasn't finished.
