Chapter 4 - TRAPPED IN THE MANSION
The rush of cold night air roared in Mark’s ears as they plummeted into the dark.
For a terrifying second, weightlessness took over as the ground rushed up to meet them.
Mark twisted his body in midair, ensuring his own back would absorb the brunt of the impact to protect Sarah and the baby.
They slammed hard onto the sloped wooden roof of the patio porch just below the balcony.
The old cedar shingles cracked and splintered under their combined weight with a sound like a gunshot.
Mark groaned in sheer agony as a sharp spike of pain shot through his shoulder blades and down his spine.
Sarah gasped, hyperventilating as she clung tightly to Leo, who burst into hysterical, terrified screams.
"Are you hit?! Are you okay?!" Sarah sobbed, her voice trembling frantically in the dark.
"I'm fine... keep moving!" Mark wheezed, gritting his teeth against the searing pain in his back.
Above them on the second-floor balcony, a brilliant yellow flash lit up the night sky.
BANG!
A bullet bit violently into the wooden roof just inches from Mark’s foot, sending sharp splinters flying into the air.
"Kill them! Don't let them leave the estate!" Julian’s frantic voice echoed from above.
Mark grabbed Sarah by the wrist and slid down the sloped edge of the patio roof toward the support pillar.
He wrapped his legs around the heavy wooden post and slid down to the cold brick patio below, reaching up to catch Sarah as she carefully lowered herself down.
"Run for the side gate!" Mark ordered, pulling her through the rose gardens toward the garage driveway.
Shouts from the estate security guards echoed from the front lawn as floodlights suddenly flickered on, cutting through the darkness with blinding beams of white light.
The siren of the mansion's main security system began to wail, a deafening sound that rattled the windows of the estate.
Mark scrambled for the keys in his jacket pocket, pressing the unlock button on his black SUV parked near the side gate.
The vehicle's headlights flashed twice in response.
"Get in the back! Get down on the floor!" Mark yelled, throwing the rear door open for Sarah and Leo.
Sarah scrambled inside, covering the crying baby with her own body on the floorboards.
Two armed security guards rounded the corner of the brick garage, their handguns raised and flashlight beams bouncing off the gravel.
"Halt! Freeze right there!" one guard bellowed.
Mark didn't hesitate for a single second.
He jumped into the driver's seat, slammed the door shut, and stomped his foot down hard on the gas pedal.
The heavy SUV engine roared to life with a furious growl.
The vehicle surged forward across the manicured lawn, tires spinning and throwing up dirt and grass.
BANG! BANG!
Two bullets smashed through the rear windshield, scattering tempered safety glass all over the leather back seats.
Sarah screamed, burying her face into her knees to shield Leo from the falling glass.
Mark steered the heavy SUV directly toward the closed iron gates at the edge of the property line.
"Hold on!" Mark screamed, gripping the steering wheel so hard his knuckles turned white.
The heavy steel bumper of the SUV slammed directly into the center of the iron gate at forty miles per hour.
Metal groaned, bolts snapped with loud metallic pops, and the lock mechanism shattered as the heavy gates swung violently open.
Sparks flew into the dark night sky as the vehicle burst through the perimeter, launching onto the narrow mountain road that led down toward the city.
Mark looked into his rearview mirror, his chest heaving as he tried to regain his breath.
The estate lights were fading into the distance, but two bright halogen headlights suddenly flickered to life at the mansion gates behind them.
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A low-slung black sedan accelerated rapidly onto the pavement, closing the gap with terrifying speed.
Julian was coming for them.
