Chapter 8 - The Maze of Echoes
The basement corridor was a blinding haze of chemical fog and blaring alarms. Sprinklers had engaged, showering icy water over the tiled floors, turning every surface slick and treacherous. Mark sprinted down the hall, Toby clutched tightly against his chest, the boy's arms locked around his neck like iron bands.
Behind them, the sharp sound of a blunt impact and a choked cry told Mark that Hayes had likely been incapacitated. Heavy bootsteps gave chase, splashing rapidly through the pooling water.
""Daddy, the stairs!"" Toby gasped into his father's ear, pointing toward an illuminated green exit sign hanging crookedly at the end of the corridor.
Mark hit the fire door with his shoulder, bursting into the concrete stairwell. The heavy door swung shut behind them, temporarily dampening the screech of the alarms. Mark took the stairs three at a time, his lungs burning with exertion. Two floors up lay the public rotunda and daylight—safety in numbers.
He reached the first landing when the stairwell door below slammed open.
""Jensen!"" a familiar voice echoed up the concrete shaft. It wasn't the masked gunman; it was Detective Donald Vance himself, his tailored suit soaked in water, his face twisted in feral desperation. ""You think you walk out of here alive? You're an escaped felon fleeing custody! Department policy authorizes deadly force!""
Vance drew a secondary revolver from an ankle holster, leveling it up through the gap between the railings.
Mark ducked, pressing Toby flat against the concrete steps as a bullet chipped a chunk of masonry right beside his ear, spraying stinging dust into his eyes.
""Keep climbing, Toby!"" Mark shoved the boy upward toward the third-floor fire exit. ""Push the bar and get into the rotunda! Tell the state troopers what you saw!""
""I won't leave you, Daddy!"" Toby sobbed, clinging to his father's sleeve.
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""Go! Now!"" Mark yelled, turning back toward the stairs to confront the armed detective barehanded.
As Toby reached the heavy metal push-bar of the third-floor door, the latch clicked. The door swung open before he could touch it, revealing Judge Vance standing on the threshold, flanked by two armed State Police sergeants.
