Chapter 10 - The Iron Gate
The heavy wooden doors of Blackwood Manor were kicked open by tactical police officers with battering rams. Flashlights cut through the dark, dust-filled air of the grand foyer.
An old man in a dirty jacket—the guard Victoria had hired—came running out of the kitchen holding a rusty revolver, his eyes wild with terror.
"Drop the weapon! Police!" Chief Callahan roared.
Before the guard could even raise the gun, two SWAT officers tackled him to the floor, disarming him and pinning his face against the floorboards.
"Where is the cellar key?" Adrian shouted, charging through the front door behind the officers, his face wild with anxiety.
"Down... down the back hallway behind the kitchen!" the guard whimpered, trembling beneath the weight of the officers. "The iron door!"
Adrian didn't wait for the police. He sprinted down the narrow, dark corridor, taking the wooden stairs three at a time until he reached a heavy iron door reinforced with steel bars at the end of a stone hallway.
Inside, complete darkness reigned. The air was frigid, thick with the stench of damp earth and rust.
"Eleanor!" Adrian screamed at the top of his lungs, his voice breaking into raw, desperate sobs. "Eleanor, can you hear me?!"
From deep inside the gloom, a tiny, raspy voice answered—weak, breathless, but unmistakable.
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"Adrian...?"
👉 Is Eleanor strong enough to survive the shock of seeing her husband after six years in total darkness?
