Chapter 15 - The Vanishing Act
As the two men advanced deeper into the conservatory, their beams dancing across the rotting shelves, I made my move. I kicked over a stack of terracotta planters behind me, sending them crashing against the flagstone floor with a deafening shatter.
"Over there!" Vance barked.
Both men spun toward the noise. In that split second, I lunged from my hiding spot, slammed the heavy iron greenhouse door shut behind me, and drove the crowbar through the exterior handles, wedging it tight.
"Hey! Open the door!" Vance’s frantic fists pounded on the reinforced glass.
I didn't look back. I sprinted through the blinding rain toward the woods, the aluminum case banging against my thigh. The storm was at its peak; lightning ripped across the black sky, turning the trees into violent silhouettes.
Ahead of me, the back gates of the estate stood tall and black, locked by an electronic security keypad. Ethan had isolated the entire property. The main gate was unreachable, and the perimeter was lined with an eight-foot wrought-iron fence topped with security wire.
Suddenly, floodlights flared to life across the entire perimeter of the estate, bathing the mud and rain in blinding white light. Sirens began to wail from the roof of the main house.
May you like
From the balcony of the master bedroom, Ethan’s silhouette appeared, a long rifle cradled against his shoulder.
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