Chapter 7 - The Unlikely Savior
I rushed up the wooden stairs and threw my entire body weight against the heavy basement door.
It absolutely refused to budge, reinforced with solid steel and a heavy exterior lock.
Maris had managed to crawl up the stairs during the chaotic fight and trap me inside the cellar.
"You are going to die down there in the dark, Gideon!" she shrieked hysterically from the hallway above.
I heard the distinctive sound of gasoline splashing heavily onto the hardwood floors directly over my head.
She was going to burn the entire house to the ground to destroy the evidence and silence me forever.
I rushed back down the stairs and desperately searched for a way to break through the narrow basement windows.
The reinforced safety glass was specifically designed to withstand massive impacts, and my tools were useless against it.
Thick, toxic black smoke began pouring aggressively through the wooden floorboards, suffocating the basement air.
I coughed violently, my lungs burning as the deadly heat rapidly intensified above me.
I realized with crushing despair that I was going to fail Lumi and leave her entirely alone in this cruel world.
Suddenly, a heavy, jagged rock smashed violently through the tough safety glass of the high window.
The glass spider-webbed and finally gave way, allowing a rush of crisp, cold night air to flood the smoky room.
I looked up and saw Marcus standing in the muddy flowerbed, holding a massive steel crowbar in his hands.
"I told you I wasn't going to let you do this alone, brother," Marcus yelled, smashing the remaining jagged glass away.
He reached his strong arm down into the window well, grabbing my hand and hauling me forcefully out of the basement.
I collapsed onto the wet grass, gasping greedily for fresh air as the roof of my house erupted into violent flames.
"Where is Lumi, is she safe at the safehouse?" I demanded, wiping dark soot from my burning eyes.
Marcus looked at me with sheer, undeniable terror etched deeply across his hardened face.
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"She sneaked out of my truck while I was coming to find you," he confessed rapidly.
"She ran back into the burning house to save her daddy."
