Chapter 4 - The Fire and the Escape
“Get in the car, Claire,” Richard ordered, motioning toward the open trunk of the idling SUV parked in the loading dock. “Or I put a bullet in your son’s knee right now.”
Claire stopped dead, her face turning ash-grey. She looked at Ethan, her eyes begging him to stay still.
“Okay,” Claire whispered, her voice trembling. “Okay, Richard. Just don't hurt him.”
She began stepping slowly toward the back of the SUV.
Richard shifted his weight, his gun wavering slightly as he watched Claire climb into the rear compartment.
That split second of distraction was all Ethan needed.
Ethan smashed the glass bottle of alcohol-based disinfectant against the corner of the stainless-steel prep table. Liquid splashed across the concrete, saturating the hem of a heavy cotton floor sheet hanging nearby.
He struck a match against the striker box and dropped it into the puddle.
*WOOSH!*
A wall of blue and orange flame erupted instantly across the floor, blindingly bright in the dim mortuary bay.
“WHAT THE—!” Richard screamed, jumping back as the flames licked at his trousers.
The heat hit the overhead fire suppression system.
*CLACK-CLACK-CLACK.*
High-pressure water nozzles burst to life overhead, drenching the room in a torrential downpour of icy water. Alarm sirens began to wail in deafening, rhythmic screeches.
“ETHAN! RUN!” Claire screamed from the SUV.
Ethan lunged forward through the falling water and smoke, slamming his weight into Richard’s waist. The sudden impact caught the larger man off-balance on the slippery, wet tile.
Richard fell hard, his head bouncing off the edge of a steel prep table with a sickening CRACK.
The pistol flew from his hand, skidding across the wet floor and disappearing under a row of metal storage lockers.
Richard groaned, clutching his bloody forehead, dazed and disoriented.
Ethan didn't wait. He grabbed a pair of heavy surgical shears from the fallen tray, ran to his mother, and jammed the sharp blade between her plastic wrist ties.
With a hard twist, the zip tie snapped.
Claire’s hands flew free. She threw her arms around Ethan, pulling him tightly against her soaking wet dress.
“I’m here, baby,” she sobbed into his hair, rain and sprinkler water pouring down over them. “I’ve got you. I’ve got you.”
“We have to go, Mom!” Ethan pulled her toward the heavy metal exit doors leading to the rear alleyway.
May you like
Behind them, Richard was already scrambling to his knees, his bloodied face contorted in psychotic rage. “I’LL KILL YOU BOTH!”
---
