Chapter 5 - The Descent into the VaultsThe service staircase was narrow, dark, and smelled faintly of floor wax and old timber. My heels clacked frantically against the metal steps as I plunged downward toward the ground floor, my lungs burning with every breath.
Above me, I heard Ethan’s enraged shout echoing through the upper corridor:
“Catch her! She’s heading for the back stairs!”
Heavy footsteps slammed onto the landing above. Victor’s deep, booming voice barked instructions to someone near the kitchen.
I hit the ground floor door, bursting out into the cavernous, industrial-sized kitchen of the estate. The stainless-steel counters gleamed under the emergency fluorescent lights, completely deserted. I scanned the room for an exit. The main side door leading to the gardens was dead-bolted from the inside, and the heavy key hung on a brass hook next to the walk-in refrigerator.
As my fingers grazed the brass key, the kitchen door swung open with a violent crash.
Victor stepped into the room, blocking the exit with his massive frame, a cruel grin spreading across his thick lips.
“End of the line, little bird,” Victor rumbled, cracking his knuckles. “Mr. Vale wants you alive if possible, but compliance is entirely optional.”
I backed away, my hand closing around a heavy, solid-brass rolling pin resting on the prep counter behind me. My mind raced through every defensive strategy I had ever read, but physical combat against a trained enforcer twice my size was a losing game.
I needed a distraction.
As Victor lunged forward, closing the distance between us with terrifying speed, I grabbed a heavy glass jar of pickled olives from the counter and hurled it with all my might directly at the overhead glass-front cabinet.
Crash!
Shards of shattered glass rained down across the stainless-steel floor just as Victor reached me, forcing him to instinctively raise his arms to shield his face from the falling debris.
It was the only opening I would get.
I swung the heavy brass rolling pin with every ounce of strength I possessed, catching him squarely across the side of his knee.
Victor let out a roar of pain, his leg buckling beneath him as he crashed hard onto the glass-strewn floor.
I didn't look back. I grabbed the heavy brass key off the hook, shoved it into the deadbolt of the side door, turned it with a sharp click, and burst out into the cool, driving Seattle rain.
The downpour hit me like a wall of ice, soaking through my silk blouse and chilling me to the bone. But I didn't care. I sprinted across the wet gravel of the driveway, ignoring the sharp stones cutting into my feet, heading straight for my car parked near the outer security gates.
Behind me, the back door flew open. Ethan’s voice pierced through the sheets of rain:
“Lauren! Stop! You won’t make it out of the county!”
I reached my sedan, fumbling frantically with my key fob. The headlights flashed twice in the dark. I jerked the door open, threw myself into the driver’s seat, and slammed the door shut, locking the manual override.
My hands shook so violently I dropped the key twice before managing to jam it into the ignition.
The engine roared to life, the dashboard instruments glowing to life like a beacon of salvation.
Through the rain-streaked windshield, I saw Ethan and two armed security guards sprinting down the driveway toward my car, shouting frantically.
I slammed the gearshift into reverse, tires spinning wildly on the wet gravel before catching traction, and rocketed backward toward the estate gates.
May you like
The heavy iron security gate loomed ahead. Without hesitation, I shifted into drive, floored the accelerator, and smashed straight through the automated barrier, sending metal sparks flying into the stormy night.
I was out. But the real war was only just beginning.
Related Stories
