Chapter 5 - The Unlikely Ally
The iron gates of the estate were heavily guarded, and the brick walls were completely unscalable while carrying a paralyzed boy.
Clara's mind raced as the sound of the barking dogs grew louder.
"The mechanic's gate," Leo whispered, pointing toward the eastern edge of the property.
It was a small, rusted service entrance used only by the local tradesmen who maintained the estate's heavy machinery.
Clara changed direction, sprinting toward the eastern wall.
When they arrived, the heavy iron gate was padlocked.
Despair washed over Clara, but then a pair of headlights suddenly illuminated the dirt road on the other side.
An old, beat-up pickup truck idled near the gate.
A man stepped out into the rain, holding heavy bolt cutters.
It was Marcus, the mechanic who had secretly helped Clara maintain Leo’s leg braces when the family refused to pay for repairs.
"Stand back, Clara!" Marcus yelled over the rain.
He snapped the padlock with the heavy cutters and shoved the heavy iron gate open.
Clara rushed through, collapsing into the passenger side of the truck with Leo in her arms.
"How did you know we were here?" Clara gasped, trying to catch her breath.
"I saw the smoke from town," Marcus said, throwing the truck into gear and speeding down the dark country road.
"I heard on the police scanner that the boy died in his bed. I knew that was a lie."
"They locked him in," Clara said, her voice shaking with rage. "They tried to burn him alive."
Marcus’s jaw tightened as he gripped the steering wheel.
"Eleanor just issued a private bounty," he revealed grimly.
"Ten million dollars to anyone who brings the boy back to her, dead or alive."
"She told the police I kidnapped him, didn't she?" Clara asked.
Marcus nodded. "You're the prime suspect in the arson and the kidnapping."
They couldn't go to the authorities.
They couldn't go to the hospital.
"We need a safe place," Clara said. "We have proof that Eleanor and Richard murdered Arthur."
Marcus looked at them in the rearview mirror.
May you like
"I know a place," he said. "But we have to get out of Rhode Island tonight."
The truck sped into the darkness, leaving the burning fortress far behind.
