Chapter 5 - THE EXECUTIVE ESCAPE
"The main stairwell is blocked by the fire shutter!" Clara panicked, her breathing turning fast and shallow.
"Stay calm, Clara! Look at me!" Mr. Cole instructed, taking her face in his hands with unwavering composure.
He pulled a gold master keycard from his vest pocket, sliding it into a concealed panel beside the service elevator.
The heavy steel elevator doors hissed open, revealing a dry, lit cabin unaffected by the primary building shutdown.
"Get in! This shaft connects directly to my private penthouse suite on the top floor," Mr. Cole said, pushing her inside.
As the elevator doors closed, two men in black tactical gear burst into the hallway, raising suppressed sidearms.
Bullets slammed into the heavy steel doors with loud metallic thuds just as the cab began its rapid ascent.
Clara sank onto the carpeted floor of the elevator, holding her sleeping child while tears streamed down her cheeks.
"Who were those men? Why would anyone want to take my innocent baby girl?" Clara wept, her voice trembling violently.
Mr. Cole leaned against the elevator wall, adjusting his burgundy tie as his mind processed the deadly attack.
"They aren't after just any baby, Clara... they are after the legal heir to the Vance forty-million-dollar estate," Mr. Cole said.
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"And five years ago, Richard Vance secretly married a woman named Clara Bennett before he vanished in a plane crash."
***
