Chapter 9 - The Final Stand
"Eleanor!" Alexander screamed loudly, dropping completely to his knees beside the open trapdoor with absolute, unfiltered terror.
Before he could foolishly jump back into the dark, deadly tunnel, the heavy wooden door violently slammed shut from the inside.
We heard the distinct, heavy screech of a metal pipe being wedged firmly against the locking mechanism, completely barricading the door.
Eleanor had intentionally locked us out to ensure the dangerous mercenaries could absolutely never reach her precious newborn son.
"We have to help her right now!" Alexander panicked, violently beating his bloody fists against the immovable wooden floorboards.
I forcefully grabbed his broad shoulders, forcefully dragging him away from the door as the blaring police sirens finally wailed loudly outside the hotel.
"The SWAT team is finally here, Alexander, they will breach the tunnels and save her, but we must protect the children first!" I ordered fiercely.
The massive glass doors of the grand hotel lobby shattered completely inward as heavily armored police officers swarmed rapidly into the building.
My trusted friend, the SWAT commander, rushed directly over to us, his tactical weapon drawn and his eyes entirely focused.
"Elena, we successfully intercepted Sterling attempting to flee the building in a stolen ambulance," the commander reported quickly, securing the area.
"My brave wife is trapped directly beneath this trapdoor fighting heavily armed mercenaries, you must blow the lock right now!" Alexander demanded frantically.
The tactical team rapidly placed a small, focused breaching charge on the wooden door, blowing it cleanly open in a shower of splinters.
The heavily armed officers poured quickly down into the dark tunnel, their bright flashlights completely illuminating the heavy smoke.
Minutes felt like agonizing hours as we waited nervously in the ruined lobby, holding Lily and the baby tightly in our protective arms.
Finally, the strong SWAT commander emerged slowly from the dark hole, his tough expression entirely unreadable behind his tactical visor.
"We successfully neutralized all remaining hostile targets in the corridor," he announced, his deep voice echoing loudly in the quiet room.
Alexander completely stopped breathing, his fearful eyes locked entirely on the dark opening in the floor.
Two police officers gently helped Eleanor climb out of the tunnel, her dark tactical suit covered entirely in thick dust and other people's blood.
She was heavily bruised and clutching a nasty, bleeding wound on her left shoulder, but she was undeniably, miraculously alive.
Alexander let out a broken, entirely relieved sob, rushing forward to completely engulf his incredibly brave wife in a desperate embrace.
Eleanor immediately reached out for her sleeping baby, burying her tear-stained face deeply into the soft blue blanket.
"I promised you they would never touch our family again, and I meant it," Eleanor whispered fiercely, kissing her husband's dirty cheek.
The nightmare was effectively over, but as I watched the police forcefully drag Vanessa and Sterling away in heavy chains, I noticed something terribly wrong.
May you like
Cynthia's body had definitely not been brought up from the destroyed basement, and the commander confirmed she was completely missing from the wreckage.
Suddenly, my encrypted security radio crackled to life with a chilling, entirely unfamiliar static frequency.
