Chapter 8 - A Safe Haven Compromised
The realization that they were being watched from within the very guts of the building sent a cold shiver down Daniel’s spine. The high-security apartment complex, which he had chosen for Claire because of its supposed exclusivity and safety, had been completely compromised.
“They have access to the building’s security feed,” Daniel said, his voice laced with venom as he crushed the photograph in his fist. He looked up at Claire, whose face had gone completely bloodless. “Pack a bag. Now.”
“Pack a bag?” Claire echoed incredulously, her protective instincts flaring up. “Where are we supposed to go, Daniel? Every safehouse you ever had is burned. Every person you trusted is either dead or working for Marcus.”
“There’s an old cabin upstate,” Daniel said quickly, pacing across the room as his mind raced through tactical exits. “My uncle left it to me years ago. It’s completely off-grid, no cameras, no digital footprint. Marcus won’t find us there.”
“And how do we get out of this building if they’re watching the elevators and the lobby?” Claire challenged, pointing toward the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the distant street below. “We’re on the twenty-fourth floor!”
Daniel stopped pacing. He looked at the heavy canvas travel bag sitting near the nursery door—the very bag Claire had been packing when he first walked into the apartment hours ago. A grim, ironic smile touched the corners of his mouth.
“We don’t take the elevator,” Daniel said quietly. “We take the maintenance service shaft.”
Claire stared at him in disbelief. “With a newborn baby? Are you out of your mind?”
“It’s either the service shaft or surrender to Marcus,” Daniel replied with absolute, unyielding conviction. He stepped over to her, his dark eyes softening as he placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “Trust me, Claire. Just like you trusted me to build this nursery, trust me to get you both out alive.”
Claire looked down at the sleeping infant, then back into Daniel’s intense, resolute eyes. The silence between them stretched for a agonizing second before she gave a stiff, decisive nod.
May you like
“Move fast,” Claire whispered.
Daniel grabbed the canvas bag with one hand, his other arm wrapping protectively around Claire’s shoulders as they slipped out of the apartment into the dark, echoing depths of the service stairwell.
