Chapter 4 - Locked Inside
The heavy mechanical thud of the SUV doors locking echoed through the quiet cabin like a judge's gavel. Julian tested the handle of the driver's door, but the override mechanism was completely dead; the onboard computer had been successfully hacked from an external terminal. Through the tinted window, he watched the remaining security guards slowly back away from the vehicle as if hazardous material had just been detected inside. The corporate trap had sprung, engineered with terrifying precision to isolate Julian and his children before they could reach the safety of federal jurisdiction.
Leo whimpered softly, pulling the beige blanket higher around the sleeping newborn. "Dad, the air is getting thin. Why won't the windows roll down?"
"Just hold onto me, buddy," Julian said, his voice remaining remarkably steady for Leo's sake, though his mind raced through every possible exit strategy. He scanned the dashboard, noting the auxiliary power port beneath the glove box. It was an older analog override port, a legacy feature the automated system's programmers had likely overlooked during the last software update.
Julian reached into his suit jacket, pulling out a titanium pen with a specialized micro-filament tip—a relic of his days in field compliance. He popped open the plastic housing of the auxiliary port and jammed the tip inside, short-circuiting the digital firewall with a sharp hiss of escaping ozone. The dashboard lights flickered wildly from amber to blue, and with a metallic groan, the central locks popped open.
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"Come on, Leo, grab my hand," Julian ordered, shoving the silver key deep into his pocket as he kicked open the driver's door and stepped back out onto the pavement.
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