Chapter 5: The House on Briar Street
John secretly moved Emily and Lily again.
Only four people knew the new location: John, Captain Miller, Police Chief Daniel Hayes, and federal agent Rebecca Shaw.
They were placed in a secure house on Briar Street with reinforced doors, surveillance cameras, and a hidden safe room in the basement.
For two nights, nothing happened.
On the third night, a storm moved across the city.
Heavy rain struck the windows.
At 2:13 a.m., the security cameras went dark.
John woke instantly.
He reached for his weapon.
The alarm system did not sound.
That frightened him more than any alarm could have.
He entered Lily’s room.
“Get up. We’re going downstairs.”
Emily saw the expression on his face and did not ask questions.
John led them into the safe room and sealed the steel door.
A moment later, glass shattered upstairs.
Heavy footsteps moved through the house.
Victor had found them.
John watched the interior camera feed from a backup system hidden inside the safe room.
A masked man entered the kitchen.
Then another figure appeared behind him.
Police Chief Daniel Hayes.
John stared at the screen in disbelief.
Hayes had betrayed them.
The chief unlocked the back door and allowed Victor inside.
Victor searched the bedrooms.
But John had left something for him.
A small recorder sat on the dining table.
Victor pressed the button.
John’s voice filled the room.
“You should have checked who built the security system.”
Red lights suddenly flashed.
Steel shutters sealed every window.
Outside, SWAT vehicles surrounded the street.
Hayes panicked.
“You said we had more time!”
Victor struck him across the face.
“You were useful until now.”
He fired at the rear lock and escaped through a maintenance tunnel beneath the house.
Hayes was captured.
Victor disappeared again.
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But this time, he left something behind.
A map of the city’s summer festival.
