Beyond the Glass Wall

David hit the heavy push-bar of the emergency exit door with his shoulder, bursting out into the cool, pre-dawn autumn air of the facility’s secure loading bay.

The sudden rush of fresh wind hit his face like a physical blow. He didn't stop to catch his breath. He scrambled over a six-foot chain-link perimeter fence, the sharp wire tearing slightly at the fabric of his orange jumpsuit, and hit the gravel parking lot on the other side.

Parked beside the tree line was a nondescript gray sedan with its engine idling.

The passenger door swung open instantly, and Officer Hayes leaned across the seat, waving frantically.

"Get in! Move, move, move!" Hayes shouted over the wailing sirens echoing from the main cell blocks.

David threw himself into the passenger seat, slamming the door shut as Hayes hit the gas, tearing out of the parking lot and onto the empty two-lane highway just as two patrol cruisers whipped around the corner of the facility with their light bars spinning.

"Are you out of your mind?!" Hayes panted, gripping the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles were stark white as he checked the rearview mirror. "If Briggs catches us—"

"He didn't catch us," David interrupted, holding up the heavy steel binder and tapping it against the dashboard with a fierce, triumphant grin. "I got the file, Hayes. We have the proof."

Hayes glanced over at the binder, a massive wave of relief washing over his tense features. He let out a long, shaky breath. "Thank God. The federal prosecutor’s office opens in two hours. My cousin is a senior investigative journalist for the City Tribune. If we walk through those doors with that physical ledger and the CFO’s confession before Marcus’s lawyers realize what hit them..."