Chapter 6 - The Dark Descent
Mateo ignored the blinding, agonizing pain radiating from his crushed hand entirely.
He violently twisted his entire body and aggressively kicked Sheriff Davies squarely in his injured kneecap.
The large, corrupt man roared in sudden pain and stumbled backward awkwardly against the kitchen counter.
The massive shotgun discharged violently into the ceiling, raining heavy chunks of plaster directly down upon them.
Mateo used the momentary distraction to launch himself headfirst into the dark opening of the storm cellar.
He violently grabbed the iron handle of the heavy trapdoor and slammed it firmly shut above his head.
He quickly slid the thick metal deadbolt securely into place just as heavy fists began pounding furiously on the wood.
Complete and utter darkness instantly swallowed the three terrified people hiding in the damp, freezing cellar.
Mateo pulled a small, silver lighter from his jeans pocket and flicked it open to provide a faint, flickering light.
Elena was sitting completely huddled in the dirt corner, weeping softly while tightly holding onto Lucas.
Lucas looked completely utterly devastated, staring blankly at his own shaking, entirely useless hands.
He finally understood the massive depth of the terrible evil that truly controlled the town of Blackwood.
Mateo knelt quickly beside them, heavily panting as blood steadily dripped from his deeply bruised hand.
He told them calmly that they needed to keep moving immediately because the heavy door would not hold for long.
He walked purposefully to the very back wall of the cellar and began forcefully pushing against a large, solid stone.
The heavy stone slowly grinded backward, revealing a very narrow, hidden dirt tunnel entirely dug by hand.
Mateo explained quickly that he had secretly spent the last twenty years digging this exact escape route for this very night.
They crawled desperately through the suffocating, claustrophobic tunnel as the muffled sounds of destruction echoed above them.
The heavy, damp earth pressed aggressively against their shoulders, threatening to permanently bury them alive at any moment.
After thirty agonizing minutes of crawling, they finally emerged into the cool, refreshing night air.
They found themselves completely hidden inside a deep, dry riverbed roughly a mile away from the burning ranch house.
Mateo looked back and saw massive, bright orange flames aggressively leaping into the dark night sky.
Davies and his ruthless men had completely set the beautiful, historic family home entirely on fire.
Elena sobbed openly as she watched her entire life and cherished memories turn quickly into useless ash.
Lucas stood up slowly, a newfound, incredibly dangerous resolve hardening his youthful features entirely.
He swore violently that he was going to personally kill the Sheriff for destroying their entire lives.
Mateo firmly grabbed his son by the shoulders and strictly forbade him from acting on pure, foolish revenge.
He pulled the ancient leather ledger safely from his coat and stated that this book was their only real weapon.
Before they could even formulate a solid plan, the terrifying sound of barking bloodhounds echoed clearly across the desert.
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Sheriff Davies had not just brought corrupt deputies to the ranch, but had also brought heavily armed tracking teams.
A bright, sweeping spotlight from a low-flying police helicopter suddenly pinned them aggressively against the dirt wall.
