Chapter 11 - The Second Cry
The sharp, healthy cry of the second infant echoed off the wooden walls, cutting through the haze of the sweet-smelling gas and the immediate danger at the door. Sarah caught the baby cleanly, her hands moving with practiced, desperate efficiency as she wrapped the second newborn in the remaining blanket.
"It's a boy," Sarah announced, her voice trembling as she laid the tiny infant beside his twin against Clara's chest. "Clara, look at them. You have a boy and a girl."
Clara opened her eyes, tears streaming down her pale cheeks as she gazed down at the two small bundles resting against her white t-shirt. For a brief moment, the chaos of the police, the betrayal of Leo, and the encroaching gas faded into the background.
"My babies," Clara whispered, her fingers gently brushing the tiny cheek of her daughter. "You're safe."
"They aren't safe yet," Officer Vance warned, keeping his weapon trained on the doorway where the cleaner was slowly pushing himself back up to his feet, a dark bruise forming on his chest beneath the trench coat.
The cleaner wiped a drop of blood from his lip, his eyes fixing on the newborns with chilling indifference. "Touching. Truly a Hallmark moment. But sentimentality doesn't invalidate a debt, and it certainly doesn't change the fact that this house is slated for demolition at noon."
"Demolition?" Martha scoffed, pulling herself up to stand beside Vance, the brass anchor clutched tightly in her right hand. "The county doesn't demolish properties with active residents."
"Leo signed the emergency eminent domain waiver yesterday morning," the cleaner smiled, reaching into his coat pocket and pulling out a detonator box with a single red toggle switch. "He claimed the structure was compromised by hazardous mold. The demolition charges were planted in the foundation before the framing even went up."
Sarah’s face drained of color. "The basement... that's why the coal chute was locked from the inside."
"Bingo," the cleaner said, his thumb resting lightly on the red toggle. "You have exactly three minutes to carry those babies out the back service road before the structural charges blow this entire hallway into the street."
Clara tried to sit up, but her body betrayed her, exhausted from the sudden and violent labor. "I can't walk. My legs... they won't hold me."
Officer Vance holstered his weapon and moved swiftly to Clara's side, scooping her up into his arms while Sarah cradled both infants against her chest. "Martha, grab the manila folder and the flash drive. We're getting out through the back window."
May you like
As they scrambled toward the kitchen, the cleaner flicked the red toggle switch with a sharp, definitive click.
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