Chapter 10 - Down the Chasm
"Marcus, alley is compromised. Arthur’s private security is waiting below," Clara whispered, stepping onto the freezing stone sill of the balcony.
"Don't drop down!" Marcus barked through the comms. "Take the utility traverse! Three floors down, there's a laundry chute access vent on the exterior wall. It leads straight to the underground waste compactor room!"
Clara didn't hesitate. She grabbed the nylon rope, swung her legs over the dizzying height, and let herself slide. The rough cords burned through her palms, tearing the fresh scabs from her hospital ordeal. Pain radiated through her abdomen like a flare of gasoline.
Above her, guards burst onto the balcony, shining tactical spotlights down the sheer wall.
"There she is! Don't shoot center mass, Mr. Vance wants her alive!"
A stun dart cracked against the brickwork an inch from Clara’s head. She swung hard, using her momentum to kick inward against a rusted iron grate three floors down. The bolts groaned and snapped under the impact. Clara let go of the rope, tucking her body as she tumbled into the darkness of the utility vent.
She slid through twenty feet of angled sheet metal, crashing through a rubber baffle before landing heavily into a mountain of discarded hotel linens.
The breath was knocked completely out of her lungs. For five agonizing seconds, she could only stare at the dim ceiling of the industrial basement, gasping for air while blood soaked through her caterer's tunic.
"Clara! Report!" Marcus shouted in her ear.
"I'm down," she groaned, rolling out of the laundry bin onto the damp concrete. "In the basement."
"Nathan just left the ballroom through the private underground garage. He’s heading for Vance Tower right now. Arthur knows you breached the suite."
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Clara pushed herself up from the floor, wiping blood and dirt from her cheek. "Where’s the exit?"
"Bay four. I’m waiting in the delivery van. Move!"
