Chapter 7 - The Chase
Panic threatened to completely consume Danielle's mind, but the fierce instinct of a mother pushed the terror aside.
She would absolutely not lose another child to the monsters who had destroyed her family fifteen years ago.
Ethan was already kneeling by the shattered window, holding a small device he had quickly assembled from his damaged backpack.
"Liam's baby monitor has a localized Bluetooth signal, and I am tracking its exact frequency," Ethan said, pointing toward the estate's sprawling gardens.
Danielle grabbed a heavy iron poker from the fireplace, her elegant facade completely replaced by lethal determination.
They sprinted through the dark hallways, following the glowing green dot on Ethan's modified tracking screen.
As they reached the grand staircase, two armed mercenaries stepped out from the shadows, raising their assault rifles.
Without a second of hesitation, Danielle hurled the iron poker with all her strength, striking the first guard squarely in the jaw.
While the man collapsed, Ethan threw a handful of ball bearings he had salvaged from the panic room directly under the second guard's boots.
The mercenary slipped violently, crashing backward down the marble stairs and knocking himself completely unconscious.
"The signal is moving rapidly toward the North Tower roof," Ethan yelled over his shoulder as they resumed their desperate sprint.
They burst through the heavy roof access doors, fighting against the powerful winds generated by a massive black helicopter hovering above the helipad.
Marcus stood near the edge of the roof, holding the crying infant in one arm while aiming his weapon at Danielle.
Danielle prepared to charge the massive man, perfectly willing to take a bullet if it meant saving her youngest son.
But suddenly, Ethan froze completely in his tracks, staring not at Marcus, but at the pilot stepping out of the helicopter.
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The pilot removed her tactical helmet, revealing long gray hair and a face Ethan had mourned every day for the past month.
"Mom?" Ethan whispered, his voice cracking with unbearable shock as he stared at the woman he thought was dead.
