Chapter 6 - Breach
The sound of splintering wood shattered the silence of the apartment.
Eleanor gasped, whirling around toward the door as a heavy boot slammed into the deadbolt lock, sending chunks of painted pine flying across the floorboards.
"Get down!" Eleanor hissed, grabbing Adeline by the arm and dragging her toward the small bathroom at the end of the narrow hallway.
"Wait—my phone—"
"There's no time!"
They scrambled into the bathroom, Eleanor slamming the door shut and locking the brass turn-latch just as heavy, rapid footsteps thudded into the living room.
Adeline’s heart hammered against her throat. The adrenaline was so thick in her veins she could taste copper. Through the thin wooden door, she heard male voices shouting—rough, urgent, demanding.
"Clear the kitchen!"
"She's not here—check the bedroom!"
"There's a back window!"
Eleanor grabbed Adeline by the shoulders, her eyes wide with a manic, desperate energy. "Listen to me, Adeline. They aren't here to interrogate you anymore. Once they realized you were talking to Julian’s sister, the directive changed. They’re here to tie up loose ends."
"There's a fire escape outside the bathroom window," Adeline whispered, pointing toward the frosted glass pane above the clawfoot tub. "It leads down to the alley."
"Go. Now."
"What about you?"
"I'm a Vance," Eleanor said, her jaw setting into a hard, unyielding line as she reached into her trench coat and pulled out a small, nickel-plated Smith & Wesson revolver. "They know who I am. They won't kill me—not yet. But they will kill you to hurt my brother."
"I'm not leaving you here to take the fall for this," Adeline said, her fear suddenly hardening into something sharp and resilient. She had spent her whole life being pushed around, blamed for crimes she didn't commit, treated like furniture. She was done running.
Before Eleanor could argue, the doorknob of the bathroom rattled violently. The latch held, but the wood around the lock splintered under a massive shoulder check.
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"Break it down!" a gruff voice roared from the other side.
Adeline didn't hesitate. She grabbed the heavy porcelain soap dish sitting on the sink edge, smashed it against the frosted glass window of the bathroom, and began kicking away the remaining jagged shards.
