Chapter 7 - The Garage Escape
Amanda clutched Leo tightly against her chest, her chest heaving as she stood in the center of the spacious, sunlit kitchen. The digital lockdown warning hummed rhythmically from the wall panel.
She couldn't go through the front doors. She couldn't open the perimeter gates without Richard’s master override code or biometric thumbprint.
Her gaze darted toward the heavy reinforced door leading directly from the pantry into the subterranean multi-car garage.
It was an older, mechanical deadbolt system installed when the historic mansion had been retrofitted—a manual backup lock that Richard had forgotten to integrate into the new smart home firmware update.
She rushed into the pantry, twisting the heavy brass deadbolt with all her strength. With a loud, metallic snap, the latch gave way.
She pushed the door open and slipped into the dim, cool expanse of the garage.
Parked in the center bay was Richard’s primary vehicle—a sleek, dark SUV with the engine keys usually resting on the mounted key rack near the workbench.
Her eyes scanned the rack. Empty. Richard always kept his keys in his suit pocket.
Panic threatened to overwhelm her, but she forced herself to breathe. She looked past Richard’s SUV toward the rear storage bay, where her own vintage electric utility cart and emergency maintenance gear were stored.
And right beside the workbench hung the master mechanical override lever for the main estate garage doors—a heavy, chain-driven manual release designed for power outages.
Heavy footsteps echoed from the kitchen pantry door as Richard entered the garage.
"Amanda! Stop running!" Richard’s voice bounced off the concrete walls, cold and menacing. "You're making this infinitely worse for yourself. You think you can drive away? The vehicle transponders are disabled!"
Amanda didn't answer. She rushed to the back wall, her arms straining as she grabbed the heavy iron chain of the manual garage door override and pulled downward with all her body weight.
*Clank-clank-clank!*
The massive steel overhead garage door began to grind upward, slowly admitting a blinding shaft of morning sunlight and fresh outdoor air.
Richard broke into a run across the concrete floor, closing the distance between them with terrifying speed.
"Get away from there!" Richard shouted, lunging forward to grab her shoulder.
With a burst of adrenaline born of pure maternal fury, Amanda spun around, using her elbow to strike hard against his chest, sending him stumbling backward onto the slick concrete floor.
May you like
She didn't wait to see if he recovered. She grabbed Leo, dove under the half-open garage door into the gravel driveway, and began sprinting down the long, winding tree-lined lane toward the main highway.
---
