Chapter 9 - The Final Breath
Nathan rushed to the shattered window and looked down at the snowy patio below.
Marcus was lying on the ground, groaning in pain, having fallen twelve feet onto the hard stone.
Vance and his security team suddenly swarmed the patio, aiming their weapons at the defeated man.
"Don't move, you piece of trash!" Vance yelled, kicking the knife away from Marcus.
The distant wail of police sirens echoed up the mountain road.
The local deputies, aided by state troopers, were finally arriving to clean up the mess.
Nathan leaned against the broken window frame, his entire body shaking from adrenaline and exhaustion.
He had won.
His family was safe.
He walked slowly back down the hallway and knocked on the heavy steel door of the panic room.
"Rosa, it's me. It's Nathan. It is over," he called out, his voice hoarse.
The heavy locks clicked, and the door swung open.
Lily ran out and crashed into his legs, crying hysterically.
Nathan picked her up, holding her tightly against his chest.
"You are safe now, brave girl," he whispered into her hair.
"The monster is gone forever."
The police rushed into the house minutes later, securing the scene and arresting Marcus and his surviving mercenaries.
Paramedics checked on Nathan, treating the bruises on his neck and the cuts on his hands.
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He refused to go to the hospital with them.
He just wanted to sit in his ruined living room and hold his niece until the sun came up.
