Chapter 4 - The Escape
The shockwave from the exploding cruiser shattered every front window of the house.
Daniel was thrown backward onto the hardwood floor in a shower of broken glass.
Thick black smoke immediately began pouring into the living room.
The tactical men outside scrambled for cover, momentarily blinded by the intense flames.
Daniel used the chaotic distraction to scramble toward the kitchen.
He burst through the back screen door into the dark, quiet backyard.
María was waiting near the wooden fence, clutching Emily tightly to her chest.
The little girl was completely silent, her face buried deeply into María’s uniform shirt.
Daniel pointed toward the dense woods that bordered the suburban neighborhood.
They sprinted across the wet grass, abandoning the dangerous street and their destroyed vehicle.
Claire’s voice suddenly crackled through Daniel’s handheld police radio.
The dispatcher frantically warned them that a fake priority call was diverting all honest officers to the opposite side of the city.
Claire had realized the entire dispatch system was being manipulated by a corrupt supervisor.
Daniel whispered into the radio, begging Claire to meet them at the old abandoned lumber mill on Route 9.
Claire promised to be there in ten minutes with her personal vehicle.
Daniel and María pushed through the thick, thorny branches of the dark forest.
They could hear the tactical men shouting orders and shining heavy spotlights into the tree line behind them.
Emily began to cry softly, completely terrified by the loud voices hunting them.
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María hushed her gently, promising that the monsters would never touch her again.
Suddenly, the beam of a high-powered sniper laser cut through the dark woods and settled directly onto Emily’s chest.
