Chapter 5
The long walk down the gravel driveway felt like marching through an endless tunnel of ancient oak trees. The afternoon sun filtered through the heavy canopy, casting long, fractured shadows across the path. Julian carried Clara in his arms, his tailored suit jacket discarded and slung over one shoulder, his white dress shirt soaked in sweat. Sarah walked closely beside him, clutching the heavy leather briefcase to her chest like a shield.
"How is she breathing, Sarah?" Julian asked, his voice strained from the physical exertion and the heavy panic clawing at his throat.
"Shallow, Mr. Vance," Sarah replied, keeping her eyes fixed on the path ahead. "Too shallow. Her skin is getting colder. We need to reach the main road before she slips away completely."
Up ahead, the massive wrought-iron gates of the Vance estate loomed against the perimeter wall, towering over ten feet high. At the base of the stone pillars sat the security kiosk, its lights dark and lifeless. Julian approached the gate, gently lowering Clara onto a cushioned bench near the intercom box while Sarah kept watch.
Julian pressed the emergency release button repeatedly. Nothing happened. The green indicator light remained stubbornly dead.
"Power to the gate control box has been cut from the master breaker in the main manor," Julian cursed, slamming his fist against the cold iron bars. "Mother planned every single detail of this."
"Look, Mr. Vance!" Sarah pointed frantically down the paved highway on the other side of the gate. A state police cruiser was moving slowly along the outer perimeter road, its roof lights dark during a routine patrol.
Julian grabbed the thick iron bars, shaking them with all his strength, but the locking mechanism held firm. He took a heavy stone from the flower bed and began smashing it against the emergency glass housing of the manual release lever.
"Hey! Over here!" Julian screamed at the top of his lungs, his voice echoing against the stone walls. "Help! We need an ambulance!"
Inside the cruiser, the driver's head turned slightly toward the gates, the silhouette of the officer visible through the tinted window as the vehicle slowed down near the estate entrance.
"He's stopping," Sarah whispered, a ray of hope finally breaking through her terrified expression. "Mr. Vance, keep shouting!"
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Julian swung the stone again, shattering the remaining glass of the box and plunging his bare hand inside to yank the heavy manual cable. The metal cable snapped with a loud twang in his hand, loose and completely disconnected at the base.
Julian stared at the frayed end of the cable in absolute horror. The cable hadn't broken from age; it had been neatly sheared off with bolt cutters from the inside of the gate enclosure just hours before.
