Chapter 5 - THE ESCAPE
“What are you doing?!” Declan barked as she physically braced her shoulder beneath his left armpit.
“Shut up and move your arms!” Narin yelled back, her voice cutting through the noise of splintering wood as the gunmen kicked furiously at the weakening door frame.
Declan realized in an instant that she was not going to leave him behind. With a harsh curse, he threw his heavy arm over her neck, using his formidable upper body strength to lift his torso while Narin braced her legs and hauled him forward with everything she had.
Together, their weight combined into a desperate, awkward shuffle, they dragged his useless lower body across the plush carpet toward the hidden bookshelf panel.
The heavy oak doors finally gave way with a loud CRACK.
Two gunmen burst into the office just as Narin slammed her palm against the hidden release button concealed inside a carved wooden mantle.
The bookshelf swung open, revealing a small, dimly lit utility elevator built directly into the mansion's thick stone foundations.
“There they are!” a gunman yelled, raising his rifle.
Declan spun around in Narin’s grip, leveled his silver revolver with deadly precision, and fired three rapid shots.
The lead gunman collapsed backward into his partner, dropping his weapon with a sharp cry of pain.
Narin hauled Declan through the narrow opening, hit the emergency descent button on the elevator wall, and grabbed the heavy manual steel door, slamming it shut just as a hail of bullets peppered the reinforced outer frame.
The elevator lurched violently, its heavy steel cables groaning as it began a rapid, mechanical descent into the dark depths beneath the estate.
Declan collapsed against the metal wall of the lift, his chest heaving as he fought for oxygen. The revolver was still clenched tightly in his hand, smoke curling gently from its barrel.
Narin sank onto her knees beside him, her entire body shaking uncontrollably as the reality of what had just happened crashed down upon her.
The small elevator descended in heavy, claustrophobic silence for nearly thirty seconds before coming to a smooth stop at the subterranean level.
The door slid open, revealing a dark, concrete utility tunnel filled with thick pipes, damp air, and the distant rumble of the estate’s backup generators.
Declan lay against the wall, staring up at the low ceiling, his eyes wild and dark.
He turned his head slowly, looking at Narin, who was sitting on the cold concrete floor, clutching her scraped knees, her breathing coming in ragged gasps.
“Every single servant fled,” Declan said, his voice barely above a whisper, laced with a strange, haunting awe. “My guards, my drivers, my personal caretakers... they all ran the second the first shot was fired.”
He leaned his head back against the cold steel, his jaw working as he processed the scene.
“Why didn't you run, Narin?” he asked softly, looking directly into her eyes. “Why the hell are you still here?”
Narin wiped a smear of soot from her cheek with the back of her trembling hand.
May you like
She looked at him with dark, fierce determination.
“Because you haven't signed my check yet, Mr. Graham.”
