Chapter 14 - The Ambush at the Carriage House
"Get down!" Alexander shouted, instantly grabbing Sophie by the waist and pulling her behind the heavy oak work table as a volley of gunshots shattered the front windows.
Glass rained down across the wooden floorboards like diamond dust, followed by the heavy thud of combat boots kicking through the oak front doors.
"How did they find us?" Sophie panted, pressing her back against the floor as bullet holes splintered the wall just inches above their heads.
"The satellite relay," Alexander cursed under his breath, reaching into his coat for his weapon.
"Victoria's backup server must have had an active ping router that Arthur's tech team tracked the moment we decrypted the files."
"We're trapped," Sophie said, her eyes darting toward the back windows, which were iron-grated and locked tight.
"Not yet," Alexander replied with grim determination.
He grabbed the laptop, ripping the titanium flash drive from the port and slipping it securely into his inner jacket pocket.
"There's an old cellar tunnel beneath the floorboards behind the easel. It leads down to the river docks."
Heavy footsteps echoed across the studio floor as the tactical operatives advanced, shouting commands in military-grade jargon, their flashlights sweeping through the darkness.
"Alexander—" Sophie started, but he cut her off, lifting a heavy wooden trapdoor hidden beneath an oriental rug.
"Go! I'll cover you!"
"I'm not leaving you behind!" Sophie refused, grabbing his arm.
"Sophie, listen to me!" Alexander yelled over the sound of approaching boots.
"If Arthur gets that flash drive, your mother dies, my company falls, and Victoria's murder is buried forever. Take the drive and run to the river boat. I right behind you. I swear it!"
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A bullet embedded itself in the wooden floorboards right beside them.
Realizing there was no time left to argue, Sophie dropped down into the dark, damp cellar tunnel, pulling the heavy wooden trapdoor shut just as the studio door burst open above them.
