Chapter 44 - Ghost Protocol
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The heavy library doors shuddered under the impact of a battering ram. The wood was beginning to splinter.
I rushed to the massive fireplace at the end of the room, reached under the mantle, and pressed the hidden switch. With a loud grinding noise, the entire stone hearth slid to the left, revealing a dark, narrow descending staircase.
"Go! Go!" I shoved Elena into the dark passage just as the library doors violently burst open.
I fired three blind shots into the smoke-filled doorway, forcing the tactical team to duck, before I dove into the secret passage and hit the emergency close button. The heavy stone fireplace slid shut, plunging us into total darkness just as bullets ricocheted off the other side of the wall.
"Turn on your night vision," I whispered, flicking down the lenses on my tactical glasses. The tunnel illuminated in a ghostly green hue.
We sprinted down the cold, damp stone steps that led directly to the sub-basement panic room. When we arrived, Marcus was standing in front of the reinforced steel door, holding a revolver. Chloe was huddled in the corner, clutching her teddy bear, her tiny face streaked with tears.
"Mommy!" Chloe cried out, running into my arms.
"I've got you, baby," I whispered, holding her tight and kissing the top of her head. I looked over her shoulder at Marcus. "Are the tunnels clear all the way to the garage?"
"Clear, but we don't have much time," Marcus said, grabbing a duffel bag of emergency passports and cash. "They're planting thermal charges on the floorboards above us. We have maybe three minutes before they breach."
"Elena, take the lead," I commanded.
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We rushed through the subterranean corridor, emerging in the hidden underground garage. Two nondescript, armored sedans were waiting. We piled into the first car. I slammed my foot on the gas, bursting through the camouflaged exit ramp and tearing out into the forest road behind the estate.
In the rearview mirror, I watched as massive flames engulfed my home. The life we had built was gone. We were ghosts again. And the clock on the crystal drive in my pocket was ticking down to sixty-nine hours.
