Chapter 5 - The Ventilation Shaft
Ethan stared in absolute sheer terror at the small, metal ventilation grate set deeply in the concrete ceiling.
He could not smell anything, but he knew the highly explosive gas was already rapidly filling their small sanctuary.
"We have to leave this room immediately, Lily, grab my hand tightly," Ethan commanded with desperate urgency.
He frantically searched the panic room for the secondary manual override switch for the heavy steel door.
He found the heavy red lever hidden behind a supply crate and violently pulled it with all his remaining strength.
The heavy steel door groaned loudly, slowly sliding completely open to reveal the dark, dusty maintenance tunnels beneath the estate.
Ethan scooped Lily securely into his arms and sprinted wildly into the dark, incredibly narrow subterranean passageway.
He used the glowing flashlight application on Nora's stolen smartphone to desperately guide them through the total pitch-black darkness.
Behind them, a massive, highly deafening explosion aggressively shattered the entire reinforced panic room.
The powerful shockwave violently threw Ethan and his daughter heavily onto the cold, damp dirt floor of the tunnel.
Thick dust and falling debris rained aggressively down upon them as the tunnel threatened to completely collapse.
Ethan coughed violently, shielding Lily's tiny body entirely with his own back until the terrible shaking completely stopped.
He quickly checked his daughter for injuries, breathing a massive sigh of relief when he saw she was completely unharmed.
They aggressively crawled through the tight, incredibly claustrophobic dirt tunnel for what felt like several agonizing hours.
Ethan finally spotted a small, rusted metal ladder leading directly up to a heavy iron manhole cover.
He pushed the heavy iron lid open and climbed carefully up into the mansion's massive, multi-car underground garage.
He silently prayed that they could successfully steal a vehicle and entirely escape the highly dangerous estate completely unnoticed.
He placed Lily gently on the concrete floor and reached confidently for the door handle of his fastest sports car.
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Suddenly, the bright, blinding fluorescent lights of the massive garage flickered violently and completely turned on.
Marcus stepped slowly out from behind a luxury vehicle, aggressively holding a heavy, solid steel crowbar in his injured hand.
