Chapter 2 - The Hunt
The door rattled violently against its hinges.
I pushed my weight against the heavy wooden frame, gripping the scalpel tightly.
"Go away!" I screamed, hoping my voice sounded braver than I felt.
A low, cruel chuckle vibrated through the wood.
"You have something that belongs to me, Doctor," the man said.
Suddenly, a gunshot rang out from down the hall.
The man cursed loudly and his heavy footsteps retreated into the darkness.
"Dr. Rowan, open up!" Detective Miller yelled seconds later.
I unbolted the door, my hands shaking so badly I dropped the blade.
"He slipped into the stairwell," Miller said, breathing heavily.
"We need to move the girls to a secure location right now," I insisted.
"The backup squad is minutes away, but we can't wait," he agreed.
I carefully disconnected Lena from the wall monitor and switched her to a portable oxygen tank.
I scooped the tiny, fragile toddler into my arms.
Emmy grabbed the back of my scrubs, refusing to let go.
We moved quietly down the red-lit corridor toward the freight elevator.
The hospital felt like a ghost town, abandoned by the night shift during the lockdown.
Every shadow seemed to stretch and twist into monstrous shapes.
We reached the heavy metal doors of the elevator.
Miller pressed the call button, his eyes scanning the dark hallway.
The mechanical whir of the elevator cables sounded deafening in the silence.
Ding.
The doors slid open slowly.
Miller raised his weapon, ready to clear the small space.
But the elevator wasn't empty.
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A dead security guard lay slumped against the back wall, his radio hissing static.
And standing right above him was a towering man in a blood-soaked mechanic's jacket.
