Chapter 4 - Into the Shadows
"Stay close to me, girls," David instructed in a fierce whisper as he used a heavy brass candlestick to break the lock on the basement door.
The main floor of the mansion was sealed tight by Victoria's automated steel shutters, but the basement was an old concrete foundation from the original 1920s structure the house was built upon. If there was a way out, it lay in the labyrinth of stone passageways beneath their feet.
Sophia held Emma’s hand tightly. Despite being nine, Sophia was much smaller than Emma due to years of malnutrition, but a sudden strength seemed to surge through her.
"I know the way," Sophia whispered, her green eyes adjusting quickly to the dark basement steps. "The space under the vent... it connects to the old coal chute."
"You walked around down there?" David asked, descending the concrete stairs with the crowbar ready in his hand.
"When she left the house," Sophia said quietly. "The lock on my door was old. I found a loose brick six months ago. I could only crawl into the narrow pipes, but I saw where the wires go."
They reached the floor of the basement. The air was cool, damp, and smelled of wet earth and ancient masonry. Heavy copper pipes crisscrossed the ceiling, disappearing into dark alcoves.
Suddenly, heavy footfalls echoed on the floorboards directly above their heads.
Victoria’s guards had arrived earlier than expected.
"Search every room!" a man’s harsh voice shouted from upstairs. "Find the kid and the father! The boss wants them loaded into the van before the neighborhood security patrol makes its rounds!"
"Papa..." Emma whimpered, pulling back.
"Shh," David pressed a finger to his lips. He guided the girls behind a massive cast-iron furnace tucked into the corner of the wall.
Through the cracks in the furnace housing, they watched a flashlight beam sweep across the top of the basement stairs. Heavy boots began slowly descending the wooden steps. One of Victoria’s mercenaries, dressed in dark tactical gear and carrying a heavy stun baton, stepped into the basement.
David’s heart hammered against his ribs like a trapped bird. He was a businessman, an architect—he had never hit a man in his life. But as he looked down at Sophia’s thin arms and Emma’s terrified face, something ancient and wild awoke inside him.
He waited until the guard walked past the furnace, his back turned as he flashed his light toward the coal bin.
David stepped out silent as a shadow and swung the crowbar with all his strength.
CLANG!
The heavy iron bar struck the guard’s helmeted shoulder, knocking the man off balance. The guard grunted, spinning around to slam his baton down, but David tackled him, both men crashing into the concrete floor. The guard was larger and trained, his heavy hand clamping around David’s throat.
"Papa!" Emma screamed.
Sophia didn't hesitate. She grabbed a heavy, pointed chunk of coal from the floor bin and slammed it down onto the guard's exposed wrist.
The guard roared in pain, releasing David's throat. David seized the opening, driving his fist into the man's jaw, knocking him unconscious against the stone floor.
Panting heavily, David scrambled to his feet, grabbing the guard’s flashlight and heavy tactical radio.
The radio crackled to life in his hand. "Unit Two, report. Did you find them downstairs?"
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David held his breath, keeping his finger off the talk button. He looked at Sophia, who was pointing toward a small wooden latch door hidden behind a stack of rusted iron pipes at the far end of the cellar.
"The coal chute," Sophia whispered. "It leads out under the rose garden."
