Chapter 3 - The Breach
The sound of metal tearing against metal echoed from the front entrance as a heavy black SUV smashed through the ornamental iron gates of the Caldwell estate. Tires screeched against the cobblestone courtyard, spinning in a cloud of white smoke before coming to an abrupt halt near the fountain.
Doors flew open simultaneously. Four masked men in tactical gear emerged, automatic rifles raised, moving with military precision. They weren't street thugs; they were professional wet-work operatives.
“Get down!” Ethan roared, grabbing my arm and hauling me violently behind the stone base of the grand fountain just as a volley of submachine gun fire shredded the air above us.
Splinters of marble and showers of water rained down around us. The sleek, peaceful gardens had transformed into a war zone in a matter of seconds. I pressed my hands over my ears, my heart hammering wildly against my ribs. Noah was underground, but the subterranean garage entrance was only fifty yards away across an open courtyard—a complete kill zone.
“Ethan, they’re going to cut off the garage!” I yelled over the deafening chatter of gunfire.
“Not if we give them something else to look at,” Ethan replied coolly. He pulled a heavy-duty flash-bang grenade from his belt, pulled the pin with his teeth, and hurled it with pinpoint accuracy toward the center of the courtyard.
The blinding white flash and concussive roar shook the earth. Shouts of disorientation echoed from the mercenaries as they stumbled backward, temporarily blinded and deafened by the blast.
“Now! Run!” Ethan grabbed my hand, his grip ironclad and unyielding, and pulled me across the open grass toward the heavy steel bulkhead doors leading to the underground tunnels.
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We threw ourselves down the concrete steps just as a fresh burst of automatic fire chewed up the turf where we had been standing a second earlier. Ethan slammed the heavy bulkhead doors shut, dropping the locking bars into place with a resounding metallic clang.
We were safe for the moment, locked deep within the subterranean belly of the mansion, but the air down here was thick with the scent of damp concrete and ozone—and we were trapped with whatever awaited us in the dark.
