Chapter 9 - The Firetrap
The small elevator carriage instantly began to heat up like a massive metal oven.
Thick, toxic white smoke started pouring in through the overhead ventilation grates.
The government tactical team hadn't just stopped the elevator; they had triggered the building's hazardous material purge system.
They were literally going to burn us alive inside the steel shaft to destroy the evidence.
Sarah coughed violently, covering her mouth and nose with the fabric of her torn shirt.
"We have to get out through the roof hatch!" I yelled over the deafening sound of the warning sirens.
I climbed onto the metal handrail and punched the ceiling panel with both of my fists.
The heavy hatch groaned but refused to pop open because of the electronic magnetic locks.
The heat was becoming absolutely unbearable, blistering the skin on the back of my hands.
Ethan suddenly grabbed my pant leg and tugged hard.
"Lift me up," the boy commanded with a strangely calm, robotic voice.
I was too desperate to argue with an eight-year-old child.
I hoisted Ethan onto my shoulders, pressing him directly against the stubborn metal ceiling hatch.
Ethan reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, metallic surgical scalpel he must have stolen from the lab.
Instead of trying to pry the hatch open, he sliced his own palm open without a single flinch of pain.
He smeared his fresh blood aggressively across the hidden biometric sensor near the hatch seam.
The system read his genetic code, recognizing him as the primary facility key.
The magnetic locks instantly disengaged with a loud click.
I pushed the heavy hatch open, and we all scrambled frantically out onto the roof of the elevator car.
We were standing in the massive, echoing vertical concrete shaft, surrounded by total darkness.
The elevator car beneath our feet suddenly erupted into a terrifying pillar of bright orange flames.
I grabbed a thick steel suspension cable covered in black grease.
"Climb!" I screamed at my wife and the boy.
We desperately shinnied up the heavy cables, the roaring fire licking dangerously at our shoes.
My muscles screamed in pure agony, but the primal fear of burning alive kept me moving upward.
We finally reached the steel doors of the lobby floor just as the fire completely consumed the car below us.
I kicked the doors repeatedly until the latch broke, and we tumbled out onto the pristine marble floor of my corporate lobby.
The building was completely deserted due to the late hour and the raging storm outside.
We dragged ourselves through the massive glass front doors and out into the freezing Chicago rain.
The cold air had never felt so incredibly wonderful in my entire life.
We ran three blocks away from the tower and hid in the shadows of an empty parking garage.
I pulled out my encrypted phone, which was completely shielded from the EMP blast.
I quickly transferred my entire personal fortune of four billion dollars to an untraceable offshore account in the Cayman Islands.
I then sent a massive, heavily encrypted data dump of all David's illegal research directly to every major news outlet in the world.
The corrupt government agents and my treacherous business partner were totally exposed.
We had completely won the war.
I pulled Sarah into my arms, kissing her deeply as the cold rain washed the blood from our faces.
"It is finally over, Sarah," I whispered, holding her incredibly tight.
She looked up at me, tears of pure joy streaming freely down her beautiful face.
"I love you so much, Andrew," she smiled, resting her head on my chest.
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I turned around to pick up Ethan so we could finally walk away and start a new life together as a real family.
But Ethan was no longer standing behind me in the dark shadows of the parking garage.
