Chapter 9 – Blood at Saint Matthew’s
Chapter 9 – Blood at Saint Matthew’s
Nathan drove through the blizzard with both hands gripping the steering wheel.
The roads were nearly invisible beneath fresh snow.
Ryan followed close behind in his police SUV.
Charlie sat quietly in the back seat beside Rosa.
The little boy never let go of his stuffed rabbit.
Every few minutes, he glanced nervously out the window.
Nathan noticed.
"You've been here before, haven't you?"
Charlie nodded.
"One time."
"With Sarah."
Nathan looked at him in the rearview mirror.
"Did she bring you to the church?"
Charlie swallowed.
"She told me never to tell anyone."
Nathan spoke gently.
"You can tell me."
Charlie looked down.
"There was a room under the church."
Nathan exchanged a quick glance with Ryan through the mirror.
Another hidden room.
Another secret.
Sarah had been leading them there all along.
Ten miles away...
Inside the abandoned chapel...
The masked gunman tightened his grip on the shotgun.
The elderly priest stood protectively in front of Sarah.
"You'll have to kill me first."
The stranger smiled beneath his mask.
"I don't mind."
He fired.
The blast echoed through the tiny chapel.
Sarah screamed.
The priest stumbled backward.
His shoulder exploded with blood.
He collapsed beside the altar.
The brass key slipped from his hand and slid across the wooden floor.
The gunman stepped forward.
Sarah lunged before he could reach it.
She grabbed the key.
The man swung the shotgun toward her.
Sarah ducked.
The weapon slammed into the pew instead.
Wood splintered everywhere.
She ran toward the back door.
The gunman cursed and chased after her.
Meanwhile...
Nathan's SUV rolled into the parking lot of Saint Matthew's Church.
The old stone building stood alone beneath the falling snow.
Its bell tower disappeared into the darkness.
Ryan parked beside him.
Four uniformed officers arrived moments later.
Nathan looked at the church.
"It feels too quiet."
Ryan nodded.
"I was thinking the same thing."
Charlie suddenly grabbed Nathan's arm.
"No."
Nathan looked down.
"What is it?"
Charlie's face had turned pale.
"Someone's watching us."
Nathan scanned the surrounding woods.
Nothing moved.
Only the wind.
Only snow.
But the uneasy feeling remained.
They stepped inside the church.
The heavy wooden doors groaned shut behind them.
Dust floated through the cold air.
Rows of empty pews stretched toward the altar.
The stained-glass windows glowed faintly in the moonlight.
Nathan slowly walked forward.
"This place hasn't been abandoned for long."
Ryan pointed toward the floor.
Fresh footprints.
Several sets.
Someone had been here within the last hour.
Charlie whispered, "The room is downstairs."
Nathan frowned.
"Where?"
Charlie walked toward the altar.
He knelt beside the first step.
Then he reached underneath it.
A hidden metal latch clicked.
Part of the stone floor slowly slid open.
A narrow staircase appeared.
Ryan looked impressed.
"No one would ever find that."
Charlie quietly answered.
"Sarah showed me."
The underground chamber was larger than anyone expected.
Shelves filled with old records lined the walls.
Metal filing cabinets stood in neat rows.
A single steel locker rested against the far wall.
Large black numbers were painted across its door.
19
Nathan slowly unfolded the paper from Charlie's pendant.
The number matched perfectly.
He reached for the locker.
It wouldn't open.
Ryan examined the lock.
"Need another key."
Nathan remembered the brass key the priest had supposedly guarded.
"The second key."
Charlie looked confused.
"There are two?"
Nathan nodded.
"I think so."
Before anyone could speak again...
A gunshot echoed from above.
Then another.
The officers shouted.
Ryan immediately drew his weapon.
"We've got company."
Outside...
Three black SUVs surrounded the church.
Marcus Kane stepped out of the lead vehicle.
Snow landed on the shoulders of his black coat.
He smiled at the church doors.
"They're exactly where I wanted them."
Daniel Cross climbed out of another SUV.
"You told me no one would get hurt."
Marcus didn't even look at him.
"I lied."
Daniel's face hardened.
"You used me."
Marcus smiled.
"I use everyone."
He motioned toward the church.
"Bring me the boy."
Inside the church...
The first officer crashed through the sanctuary doors.
Blood covered his uniform.
"They're everywhere!"
A bullet shattered one of the stained-glass windows.
Colored glass rained onto the floor.
Ryan fired twice toward the entrance.
Nathan grabbed Charlie.
"Stay behind me."
Charlie clung tightly to his coat.
More gunshots echoed through the church.
The lights suddenly went out.
Darkness swallowed everything.
Only muzzle flashes lit the sanctuary.
People shouted.
Glass continued breaking.
Someone screamed.
Nathan dropped behind a stone pillar with Charlie.
Ryan crawled beside them.
"We're pinned down."
Nathan looked toward the hidden staircase.
"The locker."
Ryan understood immediately.
"If Marcus gets inside..."
"It's over."
Nathan nodded.
"I'll go."
Ryan grabbed his arm.
"I'll cover you."
Nathan took a deep breath.
Then he sprinted through the darkness.
Bullets slammed into the stone walls around him.
One round grazed his shoulder.
He ignored the burning pain.
He reached the underground chamber.
Locker 19 stood exactly where he had left it.
Still locked.
Still waiting.
Nathan stared at it in frustration.
"There has to be another way."
Charlie suddenly appeared beside him.
Nathan's eyes widened.
"I told you to stay upstairs."
Charlie reached into his stuffed rabbit.
"I forgot."
Nathan frowned.
"What?"
Charlie pulled out something wrapped in cloth.
A small brass key.
The same shape as the lock on Locker 19.
"My mommy said..."
"...only give this to Uncle Nathan."
Nathan slowly took the key.
His hands trembled.
He inserted it into the lock.
A loud metallic click echoed through the chamber.
The locker door slowly creaked open.
Inside was not money.
Not jewelry.
Not legal documents.
Only a thick brown envelope.
Across the front, written in John Pierce's unmistakable handwriting, were seven chilling words.
The Truth About Charlie's Real Father.
Nathan's heart pounded.
He reached for the envelope.
Before his fingers touched it...
A cold voice echoed through the underground chamber.
"Don't."
Nathan turned slowly.
Marcus Kane stood at the bottom of the staircase.
A pistol was aimed directly at Charlie's head.
Marcus smiled.
"I've waited eight years for that envelope."
Silence filled the chamber.
Then Marcus spoke five words that shattered everything Nathan believed.
May you like
"Charlie..."
"...is your son."
