Chapter 2 - The Dumbwaiter Escape
The main staircase collapsed behind them with a deafening roar, sending a geyser of sparks into the hallway.
Their only exit was completely gone.
"We're trapped," Leo cried, burying his face into Clara's soot-stained shoulder.
"No, we aren't," Clara said, her mind working furiously.
Ten years of running this massive estate meant she knew every hidden secret of the fortress.
She carried Leo down the hall toward the servant's quarters, kicking open the door to the linen storage room.
Hidden behind a false wall panel was the old industrial dumbwaiter.
It was originally used to transport heavy laundry carts from the upper floors directly to the basement level.
Clara yanked the iron grate open and placed Leo inside the cramped wooden box.
"I need you to be brave, Leo," she said, her voice steady despite the chaos around them.
"It's going to be dark, and it's going to be fast."
"Are you coming with me?" he asked, his small hands gripping her apron.
Clara squeezed herself into the tight space next to him, pulling the iron grate shut just as the bedroom ceiling caved in.
She grabbed the manual release rope and pulled.
The heavy wooden box plummeted into the dark shaft.
The descent was terrifying, the walls of the shaft heating up like an oven as they bypassed the burning ground floor.
They hit the basement level with a bone-jarring crash, tossing them both against the wooden walls.
Clara kicked the bottom grate open, dragging Leo out into the cool, damp air of the underground wine cellar.
Above them, the chateau groaned, sounding like a dying beast.
"We need to get out to the woods," Clara panted, hoisting him onto her back.
"If we go to the courtyard, Eleanor will see that we survived."
She navigated the maze of wine racks, heading for the storm cellar doors that opened directly into the dense forest behind the estate.
When they finally breached the surface, the cold night air hit their faces.
They hid in the thick brush, looking back at the blazing mansion.
Sirens wailed in the distance, but Clara knew the police wouldn't help them.
Eleanor owned the local police chief.
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To the world, Leo Sterling was about to be declared dead in a tragic fire.
And Clara realized, with a chilling certainty, that this was their only advantage.
