Chapter 5: The Descent
BOOM.
The fireworks masked the grinding of the hinges as Emma threw her entire weight against the heavy baroque painting. It swung open, revealing the dark abyss. She didn't bother closing it behind her this time; she needed a fast escape route.
She clicked on her flashlight and flew down the spiral stone steps, her feet barely touching the ground.
BOOM. BOOM.
The explosions from above sounded like distant cannon fire. She reached the bottom corridor and sprinted toward the heavy steel door. Ethan was still there, curled in the exact same position, looking even more lifeless than before.
Emma slammed the silver master fob against the electronic keypad.
A red light flashed. ACCESS DENIED.
"No, no, no," Emma sobbed. She slammed it against the reader again. ACCESS DENIED.
Isabella must have disabled the master override. The wrench in Emma's bag felt useless against two-inch-thick solid steel. She stared at the keypad, panic threatening to pull her under. The lock wasn't just a reader; it had physical numbers.
Dates and numbers. Emma remembered the burner phone conversation. Isabella was meticulous. Vain. She wouldn't use a random string of numbers. She would use something significant to her ultimate prize.
Emma's fingers hovered over the keys. She typed in the date of Isabella and William's wedding: 0-9-1-4.
Red light.
What else? Emma thought frantically. Katarina Volkov. Her real identity. The day she officially became Isabella Sterling?
BOOM. Another firework shook the ceiling above. Time was running out.
Emma typed in the date of William's first wife's death. The day the obstacle was removed. 1-1-2-2.
A loud, hydraulic HISS echoed in the corridor. The light flashed green.
The heavy steel door popped open. Emma rushed inside, dropping to her knees beside the small cot.
"Ethan! Ethan, sweetie, it's Emma. You have to wake up!" she cried, shaking his small, fragile shoulders.
Ethan’s eyes opened, glassy and terrified. "Emma?" he croaked, his throat completely dry. "She... she said monsters were coming to eat me."
"I'm the only monster slayer here," Emma choked out a tearful laugh, hauling him up into her arms. He was terrifyingly light. She wrapped him in a blanket from the cot and hoisted him over her shoulder. "We're leaving right now."
Emma stepped out of the cell and began the grueling climb up the spiral stairs. Her muscles burned, her lungs screamed, but adrenaline pushed her forward. She could see the faint ambient light of the hallway spilling through the opening at the top of the stairs.
They were almost there. They were going to make it.
Emma reached the final step and prepared to rush out into the corridor.
Suddenly, a shadow fell across the opening, blocking the light.
Emma froze, staring upward.
Isabella stood at the top of the stairs, silhouetted by the flashing, colorful lights of the fireworks outside. In her right hand, she held a sleek, suppressed pistol, aimed directly at Emma's chest.
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Isabella tilted her head, a wicked, triumphant smile spreading across her painted lips.
"I always did hate a nosy maid," Isabella whispered.
