Chapter 8 - The Desperate Jump
The corrupt police actually believed Nolan was a dangerous, armed arsonist holding a guidance counselor hostage.
Principal Hale had completely and masterfully manipulated the entire narrative of the evening's events.
The fixers realized the massive police presence ruined their chance for a quiet, untraceable assassination.
They slowly lowered their weapons and slipped back into the dark stairwell to escape unnoticed.
Nolan and Ms. Davis were left completely alone under the blinding, aggressive spotlight of the helicopter.
The SWAT team began violently breaching the heavy roof access door with steel battering rams.
Ms. Davis slammed her laptop shut and shoved it securely into Nolan's waterproof backpack.
She told him that the city's police chief was undoubtedly on Hale's extensive payroll too.
They could not possibly surrender without the digital evidence disappearing forever.
Nolan looked at the terrifying, gaping gap between the library and the adjacent concrete parking garage.
It was a ten-foot drop across a dark, incredibly rainy alleyway.
Ms. Davis grabbed his hand and said they absolutely had to jump on the count of three.
They sprinted across the slippery, tar-covered roof with all their remaining strength and adrenaline.
They leaped wildly into the cold night air just as the SWAT team finally burst onto the roof.
Nolan felt completely weightless for a terrifying second before slamming brutally into the concrete ledge.
The harsh impact knocked the breath completely out of his lungs, but he held on tightly.
Ms. Davis pulled him up by his jacket, and they scrambled behind a concrete pillar for cover.
The helicopter spotlight swept right past them, losing their position in the heavy, blinding rain.
They climbed quietly down the dark stairwell of the parking garage and stole an abandoned bicycle.
They rode desperately through the flooded streets toward the local television news station across town.
It was the only place left that could broadcast the raw evidence before they were caught.
They arrived at the news building just as the midnight broadcast was beginning its segment.
Ms. Davis used her official counselor ID to confidently bluff their way past the front desk security.
They rushed into the main control room and locked the heavy, soundproof studio doors behind them.
The station manager yelled in shock and demanded to know what they were doing in his booth.
Nolan slammed the silver USB drive forcefully onto the main broadcasting console.
He told the angry manager this drive contained the absolute biggest corruption story of the decade.
The manager looked at the open files on the monitor and his eyes widened in absolute shock.
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He reached for the master broadcast switch to put the undeniable video live on the air.
Suddenly, the electrical power to the entire broadcasting building was completely and utterly cut off.
