The explosion's echo faded, replaced by the wail of alarms. Jack's muscles coiled with familiar tension - muscle memory from his father's endless drills.
Mei-Lin moved with liquid grace, her cane forgotten as she pressed a hidden panel in the wall. A section of wooden paneling slid aside, revealing a steel door.
"Your father mastered this lesson in three days." She punched in a code. "Let's see if you inherited his aptitude."
"What lesson?" Jack's attention split between her movements and the study's windows, checking sight lines like his father had taught him. The tactical response felt natural, automatic.
"Survival." Elias's voice carried an edge of resignation. "Thomas wasn't just training you, Jackson. He was preparing you."
Another explosion rocked the building, closer this time. Glass shattered somewhere down the hall.
"Time to move." Mei-Lin grabbed Jack's arm with surprising strength. "Remember what Thomas taught you about reading the shadows?"
Jack's throat tightened. "How do you know about-"
"Because I taught him." She pulled him toward the steel door. "Now run, nephew. And pray you're as quick a study as your father was."
Jack's feet moved before his mind caught up, following Mei-Lin through the steel door into a narrow corridor lit by strips of LED emergency lighting. His father's voice echoed in his memory: Movement first, questions later.
The passage angled downward, steel walls giving way to rough-hewn stone. Their footsteps rang against metal grating underfoot. Behind them, muffled gunfire pierced the alarms.
"Left," Mei-Lin called, taking a sharp turn. "Watch the-"
Jack dropped and rolled, barely avoiding a chest-high pipe. Another of his father's drills clicking into place - the countless times they'd played "shadow tag" in the abandoned factory near their apartment. What he'd thought was just a game...
"Good instincts." Mei-Lin's approval carried an edge of satisfaction. "Thomas taught you well."
The corridor opened into a larger chamber filled with screens and equipment. Dr. Chen stood at a central console, fingers flying across keyboards.
"Security breach on levels three through six," she reported without looking up. "They're using a variant of the Montenegro protocol."
"Of course they are." Mei-Lin's lips curved into a predator's smile. "Status on Package Echo?"
"Already in transit. Medical wing is secure."
Jack's chest tightened. "My mother-"
"Is safe," Mei-Lin cut him off. "Focus on staying alive. Your father would never forgive me if I let anything happen to you."
More explosions above, closer now. Dust sifted down from the ceiling.
"Time to move." Dr. Chen hit a final key sequence. The screens went dark.
Jack's mind raced, trying to process the surreal situation. An hour ago he'd been watching his mother's treatment. Now he was running through secret passages while unknown attackers invaded the mansion. Nothing made sense, except...
Except the muscle memory his father had drilled into him. The tactical awareness that felt as natural as breathing. The way his body knew exactly how to move through shadow and chaos.
"You said this was a lesson." Jack matched Mei-Lin's pace as they entered another corridor. "What am I supposed to be learning?"
"That your life was never normal." Mei-Lin checked something on her phone. "And neither was your father's death."
A massive boom shook the tunnel. Emergency lights flickered.
"First rule of survival," Mei-Lin said. "Keep moving."
Jack's lungs burned as they raced through the tunnels, his mind cataloging every turn and intersection. Left, right, down three levels, another right. His father's voice echoed in his head: Always know your exit route.
The tunnel opened into a vast underground garage filled with armored vehicles. Dr. Chen split off toward a sleek black SUV while Mei-Lin guided Jack toward what looked like a modified ambulance.
"Your mother's already inside," Mei-Lin said, pushing him toward the rear doors. "We planned for this contingency."
"Planned for what?" Jack planted his feet. "Who's attacking us?"
"People who've waited seventeen years to finish what they started." Mei-Lin's eyes hardened. "The same ones who killed your father."
The words hit Jack like a physical blow. "The factory accident-"
"Was no accident." Mei-Lin yanked open the ambulance door. "Now move."
Inside, his mother lay on a medical bed, equipment beeping steadily around her. Dr. Chen appeared, checking monitors as the vehicle rumbled to life.
"Status?" Mei-Lin asked.
"Stable. The treatment's taking hold." Dr. Chen's fingers flew over a tablet. "But we need to maintain controlled conditions for at least six more hours."
Jack grabbed a handrail as the ambulance accelerated. Through the small window, he watched other vehicles peeling away in different directions. "Where are we going?"
"Somewhere safe." Mei-Lin tapped her phone. "Somewhere they won't expect."
The ambulance took a sharp turn, emerging from the underground complex onto a private road. Jack caught glimpses of the mansion through the trees, smoke rising from multiple points.
"What about Elias?" The question surprised him - he hadn't expected to care.
"Your grandfather can handle himself." Mei-Lin's phone buzzed. She read something, lips tightening. "They're using Thomas's old protocols. Someone talked."
"What protocols? What are you-" Jack's voice caught as the ambulance swerved, taking a hidden turnoff he would have missed. Another of his father's lessons clicked into place: Notice what others miss.
The pieces started falling together. His father's "games" - learning to spot surveillance, memorize escape routes, read tactical situations. The scar above his eyebrow hadn't come from fixing a sink. It had come from learning to fall properly during combat training.
"He was preparing me." Jack's throat tightened. "All those years, he was preparing me for this."
"Thomas knew they'd come eventually." Mei-Lin checked the window. "He died making sure you'd be ready when they did."
"Ready for what?"
"To survive." Mei-Lin met his eyes. "To protect your mother. To take your place in a world he tried to shield you from."
The ambulance's engine growled as they climbed into the mountains. Jack watched his mother's sleeping face, remembering all the times his father had insisted on their "special games." The pride in his eyes when Jack mastered a new skill.
"Who was he really?" Jack asked softly.
"A man who chose love over duty." Mei-Lin's expression softened slightly. "Who gave up everything to protect his family. Including his life."
The ambulance crested a ridge. Behind them, sirens wailed in the distance.
"Your father bought you seventeen years of normal life," Mei-Lin said. "But that life ended the moment you walked into your grandfather's office. Now you have a choice - run from who you are, or embrace it."
Jack touched his mother's hand, feeling her pulse beneath his fingers. Strong. Steady. Fighting.
"I choose to protect her," he said. "Whatever it takes."
"Good." Mei-Lin checked her phone again. "Because your real training starts now."