Chapter 8 - THE BOATHOUSE
“Run!” Nico grabbed Lily, wrapping his arm around her waist, and shoved me toward the kitchen.
We hit the kitchen doors just as Vivienne scrambled out from under the shattered crystal, screaming in rage. She fired blindly into the dark, a bullet shattering the ceramic tile inches from my head.
“The steel shutters are down!” I panicked, sliding on the marble floor. “We can’t get out!”
“The dumbwaiter,” Nico said, ripping open the small wooden door built into the wall. “It goes straight down to the basement garage. It’s tight, but you both can fit.”
He shoved Lily into the small wooden box.
“Nico, come with us!” I pleaded, grabbing his arm.
“I can’t fit. And I need to hold them off so you can get to the car.” He handed me a set of keys. “Take the black SUV. The garage door operates on an independent analog circuit; you can manually override it from the wall box. Drive straight to the boathouse and get your sister. Do not look back.”
“Daddy, no!” Lily cried, reaching out for him.
Nico leaned in and kissed her forehead. “You spoke so beautifully, my brave girl. I love you.”
He slammed the dumbwaiter door shut and hit the release button. We plummeted downward into the dark.
The box hit the basement level with a hard jolt. I kicked the door open and pulled Lily out.
The underground garage was pitch black, save for the emergency exit signs. I found the black SUV, unlocked it, and strapped Lily into the passenger seat. I ran to the wall panel, smashed the glass with my shoe, and pulled the heavy red manual override lever.
The steel garage door groaned, grinding upward to reveal the pouring rain of the night.
As I threw the SUV into drive, a massive explosion rocked the floorboards above us. Dust rained down on the windshield.
I slammed my foot on the gas. We tore out of the driveway, the tires screaming on the wet asphalt.
I didn't know if Nico was alive or dead, but I had a promise to keep.
The drive to the wetlands took twelve agonizing minutes. The rain lashed against the windshield in sheets.
As I pulled up to the abandoned, rotting docks of the old Moretti estate, I saw the boathouse. A single dim light burned inside. Parked out front was a dark sedan.
I told Lily to stay on the floor of the SUV and lock the doors.
I grabbed the heavy tire iron from the trunk and crept toward the wooden structure.
Through the cracked window, I saw two massive men in dark suits sitting at a folding table, playing cards. And tied to a chair in the corner, bruised and soaked in dirty water, was a woman with long, dark hair.
Sarah.
My heart hammered in my throat. I was a housemaid. I had never been in a fight in my life. But the rage that had been building inside me for two years suddenly crystallized into pure, cold action.
I didn't sneak in. I walked to the front door, raised the tire iron, and smashed it through the glass pane, unlocking the deadbolt from the inside.
The two men jumped up, reaching for their holsters.
But before I could even swing my weapon, a deafening roar of an engine ripped through the rain.
Headlights flooded the boathouse. A sleek, armored car smashed straight through the wooden walls of the boathouse, sending splintered planks and the two men flying into the dark water of the swamp.
The driver’s side door kicked open.
May you like
Nico stepped out, covered in dust, bleeding from his shoulder, but very much alive.
He looked at me, gave a tired smirk, and lowered his gun. “Told you not to look back.”
