Chapter 4 - Through the Iron Gate"Move, move, move!" Arthur grabbed the laptop, shoving it back into the battered brown suitcase alongside the stacks of cash, and snapped the brass latches shut with a sharp click.
He grabbed Elena by the arm, guiding her toward the back of the store where a heavy iron fire door led into a dark, narrow alleyway. Chloe whimpered as Elena scooped her up in one arm while sweeping a sleeping Mia up in the other. The weight was crushing, her muscles burning from exhaustion and hunger, but fear acted as an unstoppable fuel.
"Arthur, the back door—is it locked?" Elena gasped as they reached the end of the dark corridor.
"It's bolted from the inside," Arthur said, sliding his free hand into his jacket and pulling out a heavy steel crowbar. "Cover your ears."
With a savage grunt, he wedged the crowbar into the rusted frame and threw his entire weight against it.
CRACK!
The iron bolt sheared off with a deafening screech that echoed down the brick-lined alleyway like a gunshot. At the exact same second, an explosion shattered the front of the dry-cleaning shop—a concussive blast of fire and glass that blew the front windows completely inward, sending a shockwave rippling through the building.
"Go! Go! Go!" Arthur shouted, shoving the heavy iron door wide open.
Rain slammed into them as they burst out into the alley, the frigid air stinging their faces. The alley was a canyon of shadows, lit only by the distant neon sign of a noodle shop three streets over.
"This way—toward the subway entrance!" Arthur commanded, leading the charge through ankle-deep rushing water.
They had only taken twenty steps when a blinding beam of white light cut through the rain ahead of them, pinning them against the brick wall like insects under a microscope.
"Freeze! Federal agents! Drop the case and put your hands where we can see them!"
Two men in black tactical gear, holding suppressed submachine guns, stepped out from the shadows at the end of the alley, blocking their escape route to the subway. Their faces were obscured by gas masks and heavy hoods, their movements precise, robotic, and lethal.
Elena’s heart stopped. There was nowhere left to run. The front was blown out, the alley was blocked, and her daughters were shivering uncontrollably in her arms.
Arthur didn't hesitate.
With a roar of defiance, he hurled the heavy brown suitcase directly at the lead agent's legs, catching the man off balance and sending him crashing into a stack of plastic milk crates. As the second agent raised his weapon to fire, Arthur lunged forward, tackling him into the brick wall with a sickening thud.
"Elena! Run to the subway stairs! Don't look back!" Arthur grunted, struggling to wrench the submachine gun from the second agent's grasp as they tumbled into the swirling muddy water.
"Arthur!" Elena screamed.
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"GO!" Arthur roared, a spray of blood mixing with the rain as the agent drove a heavy tactical boot into his ribs.
Tears streaming down her face, mixing freely with the rain, Elena clutched Chloe and Mia tighter against her chest and sprinted past the struggling men into the darkness of the alley's mouth.
