Chapter 3 - The Ghost Town
The heavy iron deadbolt on the cabin door slid shut with a deafening, metallic clank.
Vance instantly dropped his phone and lunged aggressively toward the heavy wooden door.
He threw his massive shoulder against the thick oak, but the reinforced frame did not even budge.
The sharp smell of gasoline suddenly began to seep heavily under the doorframe.
"He is completely dousing the entire porch in fuel!" Vance shouted in sheer panic.
I desperately tried to stand up, but my splinted leg immediately buckled beneath my weight.
Vance rushed back to my side and effortlessly scooped me into his strong arms.
A terrifying "whoosh" echoed through the woods as a match was struck and dropped.
Flames violently erupted across the front of the ancient cabin, instantly devouring the dry, rotting wood.
Thick, black smoke aggressively poured into the small room, choking the precious oxygen from our lungs.
Vance kicked a wooden chair through the small, dirty window at the back of the cabin.
He shoved me roughly through the jagged glass opening just as the roof began to collapse.
I tumbled painfully into the wet mud outside, entirely covered in soot and minor scratches.
Vance dove out a second later, landing heavily beside me as the entire structure violently exploded into a fireball.
We crawled desperately into the thick, protective brush of the dark forest to hide.
Heavy footsteps crunched confidently across the gravel driveway as Evan walked toward the blazing inferno.
He stood silently in the glowing orange light, watching the cabin burn with an absolutely empty, psychopathic stare.
The corrupt county sheriff stood right beside him, casually resting his hand on his holstered weapon.
"Make sure they are completely reduced to ash before you leave," Evan commanded the sheriff coldly.
Vance placed a rough hand over my mouth to ensure I did not make a single sound.
We waited in terrifying, absolute silence until Evan finally walked back to his waiting vehicle.
Once the car drove away, Vance dragged me deeper into the treacherous, unforgiving wilderness.
"We have to reach the old abandoned mining town of Gatlin Ridge," Vance whispered breathlessly.
"David hid the original, unaltered will inside a secure safe in the ruined post office."
"That document completely cuts Evan out of the inheritance and exposes his fraudulent identity."
We hiked through the freezing, torrential rain for three agonizing, torturous hours.
Every step I took required a massive, superhuman effort to ignore the blinding pain in my leg.
We finally reached the edge of the forgotten ghost town just as the sun began to barely rise.
The dilapidated wooden buildings looked like rotting teeth against the foggy mountain landscape.
We entirely avoided the main street and crept quietly through the overgrown back alleys.
Vance forcefully kicked open the rotted door of the collapsed post office building.
He immediately dropped to his knees and began tearing up the molded floorboards with his bare hands.
A heavy, dark iron safe was perfectly concealed beneath the ruined foundation.
Vance quickly spun the dial, entering the secret combination David had entrusted to him.
The heavy metal door clicked loudly and slowly swung open to reveal the contents.
I leaned forward entirely expecting to see stacks of crucial legal documents and evidence.
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Instead, the safe was completely empty except for a bright red digital timer.
The timer was violently counting down from exactly three seconds.
