Chapter 4 - The Desperate Escape
The deafening silence in the pediatric ward was only broken by the terrified whimpering of the medical staff pressed against the walls.
Reena smiled with a wicked, triumphant grace, casually fixing a stray lock of hair as she watched the officer aim his gun.
She calmly instructed her corrupt accomplice to shoot Peter and claim the dangerous kidnapper had violently reached for a weapon.
Peter knew that he could not possibly fight two armed, trained police officers in a crowded hospital without getting the children killed.
He slowly raised his bruised hands in the air, maintaining direct eye contact with the officer to draw all the dangerous attention away from Drew.
He took one small, calculated step backward, positioning himself perfectly beside a massive, heavy metal oxygen tank resting on a steel cart.
Without warning, Peter grabbed the heavy cylinder and hurled it with all his remaining strength directly through the massive glass observation window.
The glass shattered with an explosive, deafening crash that instantly triggered the hospital's blaring emergency security alarms.
The sudden chaos and blinding shower of sharp glass caused the corrupt officer to flinch and momentarily lower his loaded weapon.
Peter did not waste a single millisecond, sweeping Drew up into his arms and sprinting into the medical room to grab tiny Lily from her bed.
He ignored the burning pain in his ribs, carrying both children through the chaotic, screaming crowds in the crowded hospital corridors.
He ducked into a restricted, dimly lit stairwell, locking the heavy fire door just as he heard heavy tactical boots pounding furiously behind him.
He carried the terrified children down four flights of concrete stairs, knowing the local police department controlled all the standard exits.
He found a heavy steel maintenance door leading to the underground parking garage and quickly barricaded it with a heavy wooden pallet.
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Peter set the children down gently in the dark, damp corner, promising them in a shaking voice that everything would be okay.
Just as he turned around to search for a usable vehicle, the heavy steel door violently bowed inward as a massive shotgun blast blew the hinges entirely off the frame.
