Chapter 4 - THE BRASS KEY REVEALS THE TRUTHTime seemed to slow down to a crawl.
Ofelia smiled, her finger beginning to depress the trigger. Octavio raised his weapon, knowing the physics of the distance meant they would likely kill each other.
Suddenly, a small, stealthy shadow darted out from the dark corner behind the bookshelf.
It was eight-year-old Emiliano.
He didn't make a sound. Total silence enveloped the boy, but his eyes blazed with a fierce, terrifying intelligence. In his small hands, he held the heavy brass fireplace poker.
Before Ofelia could pull the trigger, Emiliano swung the poker with all his might, catching Ofelia squarely behind the knee.
Crack.
Ofelia screamed, her leg buckling violently as she lost her balance. Her shot went wide, burying a bullet harmlessly into the ceiling plaster.
Octavio didn't hesitate. With lightning speed, he stepped forward, the butt of his pistol crashing down against Ofelia’s temple. The housekeeper crumpled to the floor, unconscious, blood pooling neatly on the expensive rug.
The room fell silent once more, save for the pattering of rain against the broken windowpanes.
Octavio dropped his gun, breathing heavily. He fell to his knees, not looking at Ofelia, but pulling his son into his arms.
"Mili... oh, my God, Mili," Octavio choked out, his tough facade completely shattering. "You could have been killed."
Emiliano pushed his father back gently. The boy reached out, taking his father’s hand, and placed it directly against his own right ear. Then, Emiliano pointed at Clara, who was crawling out from beneath the desk, and pointed back at the shattered window, mimicking the extraction of a foreign object.
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Octavio looked at Clara, his eyes wide with a sudden, dawning horror.
"Get the medical kit from my private safe," Octavio ordered Clara, his voice cracking. "Now."
