Chapter 4 - The Tunnels
Victor's voice echoed through the cellar, cold and terrifyingly calm.
He warned us that the neurotoxin would take effect in less than three minutes.
I looked at the heavy steel door of the panic room, realizing it was now a death trap.
Elena swore under her breath, quickly pulling a small crowbar from a supply shelf.
She ran to the far wall of the cellar and began prying at the ancient stone bricks.
I demanded to know what she was doing.
She explained that Sofia had secretly expanded the old prohibition tunnels beneath the estate.
She revealed that the tunnels led directly into the city's abandoned subway system.
I helped her pull the heavy stones away, revealing a dark, narrow passageway.
The air in the cellar was already growing thick and heavy, making it difficult to breathe.
I grabbed the boys and shoved them into the tunnel, urging them to crawl as fast as they could.
Elena followed them, leaving me to pull the stone bricks back into place.
I sealed the entrance just as the heavy steel door of the cellar blew open with a deafening roar.
I scrambled down the tunnel, the darkness completely consuming us.
We crawled through the dirt and cobwebs for what felt like hours.
The air grew colder as we finally reached a larger, concrete tunnel.
We stumbled out into an abandoned subway station, the tracks rusted and forgotten.
The boys were shivering, terrified by the darkness and the echoing silence.
I pulled them close, trying to offer comfort I didn't know how to give.
I looked at Elena, demanding to know our next move.
She pulled a secure satellite phone from her pocket and dialed a long string of numbers.
She spoke in rapid, coded phrases, requesting an immediate extraction.
She hung up the phone, her face tight with worry.
She told me that the agency was sending a heavily armed team to pick us up in thirty minutes.
I felt a surge of relief, believing we were finally going to be safe.
But the relief was shattered when I saw a laser sight sweep across the concrete wall behind her.
I tackled Elena to the ground as a suppressed sniper round sparked against the floor.
A group of heavily armed men emerged from the shadows of the tunnel, their weapons raised.
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But they weren't wearing the cartel's insignia.
They were wearing the uniform of the very intelligence agency Elena had just called for help.
