Chapter 6 - The Midnight Rescue
Mark spun around, regaining his balance with an animalistic snarl. "You foolish bitch! How did you get out of that room?"
"The boy," Sarah shouted, tears streaming down her pale cheeks. "Eli left the storm hatch unlocked from the outside before he ran!"
Mark lunged toward Sarah, but Rachel didn't hesitate. Gathering all the weight of her body, Rachel threw herself directly into Mark’s side, tackling his legs with a fierce shoulder-check.
Mark lost his footing on the wet concrete floor, crashing heavily to the ground.
"Sarah, the gun!" Rachel yelled, scrambling backward on her hands and knees to protect her stomach.
Sarah kicked the pistol across the floor just as Detective Brooks burst into the garage, his weapon trained squarely on Mark’s chest.
"DON'T MOVE!" Brooks roared, his voice echoing off the concrete walls like thunder. "Put your hands flat on the floor! NOW!"
Mark froze. The fight left him all at once. He dropped his forehead against the wet concrete, panting heavily, cursing as Brooks stepped forward, pressed a knee into his spine, and snapped a pair of heavy steel handcuffs around his wrists.
"Dispatch, I have the suspect in custody," Brooks barked into his shoulder mic, his breath coming in heavy white clouds. "Send medical units to 1442 Crestview Drive immediately. Multiple victims on scene."
Sarah dropped the piece of wood and threw herself out of the garage, sprinting toward the lawn. She dropped to her knees beside the baby carrier, pulling back the blanket with trembling hands.
A tiny baby girl, barely four weeks old, with a head of fine dark hair, looked up at her and let out a loud, healthy cry.
"Lucy... oh my baby, my sweet Lucy!" Sarah sobbed, pulling the infant into her arms and holding her tightly against her chest.
From the police car down the driveway, the rear door burst open. Eli came running through the rain, his bare feet slapping against the asphalt.
"Mom! Mom!"
"Eli!" Sarah cried, holding one arm open as her son threw himself into her lap, wrapping his arms around her neck, weeping hysterically. "You saved us, baby. You saved us!"
Rachel leaned against the wall of the garage, watching the mother, son, and baby held tight in a wet, tearful embrace beneath the rain.
May you like
She placed her hands over her own stomach, feeling the strong, steady kicks of her unborn daughter.
"You did good, little one," Rachel whispered to her belly, a sudden burst of warmth filling her heart despite the freezing cold night. "We did good."
