Chapter 20: The Road of No Return

The men's footsteps were rapidly approaching the corridor leading to the room. Marco, Franco, and Salvo exchanged glances quickly, while Columbo was busy closing the laptop and carrying it with him.

"We have less than 10 seconds before they storm the place." Marco said as he backed away against the wall, trying to think of a quick plan.

"Simple suggestion, let's run?" Salvo said as he raised his hands.

"Genius, where are we going to run to? The only door is in front of us!" Franco replied as he pointed to the only corridor where the sounds of heavy feet were echoing.

Columbo, who seemed strangely calm, said in a low voice, "I think I have a solution..."

Before anyone could ask for the solution, Columbo suddenly pressed a small button on his device, and suddenly, all the lights in the place went out.

"What did you do?!" Marco whispered angrily.

"Just trust, my friend." Columbo said with a smile as he pulled out his night vision goggles from his bag and put them on.

Then, in the darkness, he began to hear the sound of crashes and screams from the guards who were thrown off balance by the sudden darkness.

"Aaaah! Who hit me?!"

"Who grabbed my neck?!"

"What a bad day!"

Salvo, who was amused by the situation, whispered, "It looks like they're in a free wrestling match!"

"Stop joking, let's get out now!" Marco said as he calmly led them through the dark corridor, avoiding the guards who were stumbling everywhere.

Exit to the roof

A few moments later, they reached the emergency ladder, and quickly climbed to the roof of the building. The city below them was lit up, but it wasn't any brighter than the red eyes that were starting to burn beneath them.

"We have a problem." Franco said as he looked out at the street.

There were more than ten black cars surrounding the building, and armed men were getting out of them one by one.

"Oh my god… are we in an action movie?!" Salvo said as he watched the scene from the edge.

"Do you have another plan, genius?" Marco asked as he turned to Columbo.

Columbo, who was looking down coldly, said, "Do you trust me?"

Marco sighed. "No."

"Great, then jump with me!"

Without waiting for an answer, Columbo ran and jumped off the edge of the building!

Marco, Franco, and Salvo froze in place.

"Did he just commit suicide?!" Franco shouted.

But before they could process what had happened, they heard the sound of an engine revving up from below, and then Columbo's voice appeared as he shouted from below: "Come on, the car is equipped with airbags, jump!"

Marco looked at Salvo. "You first."

"Why me?!"

"Because I like to see someone else try dangerous things before me."

Franco didn't wait, he jumped right in, and fell into the truck that was already ready to receive them.

Marco and Salvo exchanged glances, then jumped out at the same time.

The Great Escape

As they got inside the truck, Columbo started driving it at a crazy speed, overtaking the cars that were trying to chase them.

"You're a pro at hacking and street racing?!" Franco shouted as he held onto the back seat.

"I'm multi-talented." Columbo said as he pressed the gas pedal more.

Black cars started to catch up with them quickly, and the sound of gunfire began to fill the street.

"Okay, now what?!" Marco asked.

Columbo smiled and pointed to a small control panel next to him. "Press the red button."

Marco didn't hesitate, he pressed the button, and suddenly, smoke bombs were launched from behind the truck, making it impossible for the pursuers to see.

"Wow! Are we in James Bond?!" Salvo said with a laugh.

"Better, we're in an action comedy!" Columbo said as he quickly turned into a narrow street, avoiding a security checkpoint at the last moment.

After a crazy chase, they finally managed to sneak into a back alley, where Columbo suddenly stopped and turned off the engine.

"Did we survive?" Franco asked with a gasp.

"Yes, but things are getting complicated." Marco said as he looked at the paper he suddenly found in his pocket.

"What is this?" Salvo asked.

Marco read aloud: "If you want to know the truth… come alone to the attached address. Don't bring your friends."

Everyone exchanged glances in silence.

"This… is a trap, isn't it?" Franco said.

Marco didn't reply, but he knew the game had entered a whole new phase…