Chapter 2 - The Escape to the Underground
They ran until their lungs burned and the streetlights began to flicker out.
The muddy boy led them down a narrow, forgotten alleyway covered in graffiti.
He pushed aside a heavy piece of corrugated metal, revealing a hidden door in the brick wall.
Arthur hesitated, but the sound of screeching tires in the distance forced his hand.
They rushed inside, and the boy slammed the heavy door shut, locking it with three separate bolts.
The room was damp and smelled heavily of rust and old paper.
Arthur gently set Lily down on a wooden crate.
He knelt in front of her, his hands trembling as he held her small shoulders.
He asked her to explain everything, begging for the truth.
Lily opened her eyes, and Arthur gasped at the vibrant, perfectly clear blue irises.
She looked at him with profound sorrow and guilt.
She explained that her mother had survived the crash that night.
Evelyn had visited Lily in the hospital while Arthur was in a coma.
Her mother had threatened her with unimaginable horrors.
Evelyn told Lily that if she ever let Arthur know she could see, he would be killed instantly.
Evelyn belonged to a powerful, dangerous syndicate that needed Arthur to believe they were both victims.
Lily had spent five years faking blindness just to keep her father breathing.
Arthur felt hot tears streaming down his face as he realized the burden his little girl had carried.
He pulled her into a fierce, protective hug, promising that he would never let anyone hurt her again.
The boy cleared his throat, pulling a small, waterproof flashlight from his muddy pocket.
He introduced himself as Max.
Max explained that he was a runner for the underground, a network of street kids who saw everything.
He had been watching Evelyn’s men tracking Arthur for weeks.
Max said they were no longer safe anywhere in the city.
Evelyn’s syndicate owned the police, the judges, and the politicians.
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If they wanted to survive the night, they had to disappear completely.
Arthur stood up, his fear rapidly transforming into a cold, dangerous anger.
