Chapter 32 - The Interception
"He's taking her!" I screamed, slamming my hands against the unbreakable glass of the observation window. The sheer, primal terror of a mother watching her child being stolen ripped through my chest.
Elias didn't waste a fraction of a second. He didn't run toward the playroom door; he knew the electronic locks automatically engaged during a fire alarm protocol to prevent unauthorized movement between zones. Instead, he kicked open the observation room door and sprinted down the main corridor, heading straight for the exterior alleyway where the emergency exit discharged.
Derek slammed his shoulder into the panic bar of the heavy steel door. It burst open, spilling him out into the freezing, pouring rain of the back alley. He clutched Maya tightly against his chest, sprinting frantically toward the idling, dark gray sedan parked illegally at the end of the alley. Vivian was sitting in the driver's seat, screaming for him to hurry. Vance Gable was nowhere to be seen, having pulled the alarm and fled.
But before Derek could cover even half the distance, a massive, immovable shadow stepped out from behind a brick dumpster enclosure, entirely blocking his path.
It was Elias.
"Put the child down, Derek," Elias rumbled, his voice cutting through the wailing sirens and the heavy rain like a scythe. He didn't draw a weapon; he didn't need to. He simply planted his feet, a towering wall of lethal consequence.
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Derek skidded to a halt on the wet asphalt. His eyes were wide, feral with panic. "Get out of my way! She's my daughter!"
"She is a hostage," Elias corrected coldly. "And you are out of time. Put her down, or I will break every bone in your body."
