Chapter 4 - ESCAPE FROM THE GOLDEN CAGE
Inside the private medical suite upstairs, alarm sirens howled continuously.
The glass wall of the advanced diagnostic chamber was completely shattered.
Two medical guards lay unconscious on the marble floor, pool of red spreading beneath them.
Victor burst through the double doors, his handgun raised high.
"Lily!" Victor shrieked in absolute agony.
The specialized medical bed was completely empty.
The heart monitor was displaying a flat, steady tone.
On the shattered glass wall, written in fresh black spray paint, was a single symbol: a coiled viper.
"Search every inch of the estate!" Victor screamed at his men, his voice cracking with unhinged desperation.
"Block every road within fifty miles!"
"Nobody exits the county line alive!"
Meanwhile, deep in the dark basement, Leo was ducking beneath the heavy iron pipes.
The sudden power outage caused by the security breach had disabled the cell’s electronic lock.
The thick steel door was resting slightly open.
Leo squeezed his thin body through the narrow gap into the dark corridor.
He kept his back pressed against the cold stone wall, moving like a ghost.
He could hear the heavy boots of guards echoing loudly on the floorboards above him.
"Find the kid!" a guard shouted from the top of the stairs. "He's part of the hit squad!"
Leo’s heart was beating so hard he felt like he was suffocating.
He scrambled toward the laundry chute at the end of the narrow hallway.
Without hesitating, he plunged headfirst into the dark metal shaft.
He slid down rapidly, tumbling into a giant basket of dirty linen on the ground floor.
He gasped for air, pushing the heavy towels off his face.
Suddenly, a tiny, cold hand reached out and grabbed his wrist.
Leo nearly screamed, but a soft hand clamped firmly over his mouth.
It was Lily.
She was standing behind a tall stack of laundry carts, dressed in a plain grey hoodie.
Her eyes were wide, filled with a terrifying mixture of shock and sheer excitement.
"Shh!" she whispered in his ear, her voice barely audible over the blaring alarms.
"They think someone took me."
"Why aren't you in your room?!" Leo whispered frantically, pulling her hand off his mouth.
"Your dad thinks I'm a killer! He's going to shoot me!"
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"Because I saw the surveillance cameras," Lily whispered back, her voice deadly serious.
"My father didn't protect me three years ago... he was the one who ordered the car crash."
