Chapter 6 - The Hunter in the Dark
The deep silence of the isolated woods was terrifying without the distant hum of the stolen SUV.
My sister-in-law frantically shoved a heavy wooden dresser against the cabin's only front door.
I grabbed a rusted fire poker from the cold fireplace, gripping the heavy iron handle until my fingers ached.
We knew it was only a matter of time before my husband managed to post bail and hunt us down.
My daughter whimpered softly on the dusty cot, the residual sedatives still keeping her dangerously lethargic.
I knelt beside her, whispering gentle promises that I would protect her with every ounce of my life.
Suddenly, the harsh crunch of heavy boots stepping on dry twigs echoed loudly from the woods outside.
A bright beam of a high-powered flashlight cut fiercely through the dirty glass of the cabin window.
My husband’s calm, mocking voice drifted smoothly through the thin wooden walls of our fragile shelter.
He cheerfully announced that the police had released him on his own recognizance because he had powerful friends on the judicial payroll.
He promised that if we simply handed over the baby and the insurance documents, he would make our deaths quick and painless.
My sister-in-law began to sob quietly, completely paralyzed by the sheer terror of her brother's arrival.
I refused to die in this rotting cabin, and I absolutely refused to let him touch my beautiful daughter again.
I noticed a loose floorboard beneath the dusty rug that seemed to cover a hollow crawlspace.
I pried the wooden plank up with the sharp edge of the fire poker, revealing a narrow tunnel leading out into the dirt beneath the cabin.
I strapped my baby tightly to my chest using a torn bedsheet and forced my sister-in-law to crawl into the dark tunnel first.
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Just as I lowered my shoulders into the damp earth, the heavy front door exploded inward with a deafening crash.
My husband stood in the ruined doorway, holding a heavy hunting rifle aimed directly at my head.
