Chapter 5 - The Glass Shatters
Dawn was still an hour away when Liam arrived at Elena’s secluded suburban bungalow. The neighborhood was dead quiet, but the absence of normal streetlights sent warning bells ringing through his instincts. The bulbs had been smashed out along the sidewalk.
Liam drew the suppressed pistol he had taken from the warehouse operative, keeping it tucked beneath his coat. He crept toward the front porch.
The front door was ajar by an inch. The brass latch had been sheared clean off.
""Elena!"" Liam hissed, bursting into the foyer.
The living room was ransacked. Sofa cushions were torn open, framed family photos smashed on the hardwood floor. In the center of the kitchen, Elena sat tied to a wooden chair, her lip split and bleeding, weeping silently into a gag.
Liam rushed forward, slicing through the zip-ties with a pocketknife. He yanked the tape from her mouth. ""Elena! Where is she? Where is Clara?""
Elena choked on a sob, trembling uncontrollably as she grasped Liam's jacket. ""Two men... masks... they said if I screamed, they'd shoot. Liam, they didn't take her away. Clara was hiding in the laundry chute like we used to do when we were kids! I didn't tell them!""
Liam sprinted down the hallway to the basement utility closet, tearing the small metal door open. Curled inside the wicker hamper beneath the chute was Clara, clutching her stuffed rabbit, her small body shaking with silent tears.
""Daddy?"" she whimpered, peeking out from beneath the blankets.
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""I’ve got you, baby,"" Liam breathed, lifting her into his arms and holding her against his heart. ""Daddy's here.""
Before they could reach the exit, headlights blazed through the shattered living room window, followed by the deafening roar of automatic gunfire tearing through the wooden walls.
