Chapter 7 - The Desperate Dive
Peter felt time completely slow down as he launched his body horizontally across the dirty concrete floor.
He extended his left arm to its absolute maximum limit, completely ignoring the tearing pain in his injured shoulder.
His hand snapped shut around the hot metal of the silver lighter just millimeters before it struck the gasoline.
He crashed heavily onto his ribs, sliding across the toxic liquid but successfully preventing the catastrophic explosion.
Reena screamed in absolute fury, realizing her sadistic plan to murder the children had just been ruined.
She lunged forward to stomp on Peter’s head, but he quickly rolled away and aimed the stolen police weapon at her chest.
He ordered her to freeze immediately, his voice booming with a terrifying authority that echoed through the dark warehouse.
Reena stopped in her tracks, raising her hands in the air with a look of pure, venomous hatred on her face.
Peter slowly climbed to his feet, keeping the gun perfectly steady as he backed toward the wooden support beam.
He reached behind his back with his free hand and used a pocketknife to frantically slash the ropes binding the children.
Drew collapsed into Peter’s legs, tightly hugging his uncle while keeping a fiercely protective arm wrapped around little Lily.
Peter told the children to run outside and hide behind the large rusted bulldozer parked near the tree line.
Drew hesitated for a single second before grabbing his sister's hand and limping as fast as he could toward safety.
Once the children were clear of the gasoline, Peter finally allowed himself a tiny sliver of genuine relief.
He stared at the woman who had murdered his brother and tortured his blood relatives for three long years.
Reena smiled an evil, confident smile, reminding Peter that he was too much of a coward to shoot an unarmed woman.
She bragged that she would hire the best defense lawyers in the country and claim Peter had kidnapped the kids.
Peter calmly reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out the small glass vial of liquid poison he had found.
He told Reena that the FBI was already reviewing the medical evidence and her corrupt police contacts could not save her.
Suddenly, the deafening roar of a massive engine echoed from the dirt road leading into the lumber mill property.
Brilliant white headlights flooded through the broken windows, completely blinding Peter and casting long, chaotic shadows on the walls.
A heavy black SUV smashed straight through the rotting wooden doors of the warehouse, throwing splintered debris everywhere.
The vehicle skidded to a violent halt directly between Peter and Reena, perfectly shielding the murderer from Peter’s line of sight.
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The tinted passenger window slowly rolled down, revealing the barrel of a high-powered sniper rifle pointed directly at Peter’s face.
A terrifyingly calm voice echoed from the dark interior of the vehicle, ordering Peter to drop the weapon immediately.
