CHAPTER 15: THE MIDNIGHT BREACH
CHAPTER 15: THE MIDNIGHT BREACH
The storm hit the valley at precisely midnight.
Torrential rain hammered against the wide glass windows of our home, the thunder echoing off the mountain ridges like artillery fire.
Suddenly, the lights flickered. Then, they died completely.
The backup generator did not kick in. The familiar, rhythmic hum of the house's electrical system went dead silent.
âMom?â Maisieâs voice called out from the dark hallway, small and terrified.
I bolted from my bed, grabbing the tactical flashlight from my nightstand.
âStay in your room, Maisie! Lock the door!â I shouted back.
Chelsea met me in the foyer, a heavy iron fireplace poker clutched in her hands. Through the glass panels of the front door, the high-beam headlights of two large industrial trucks illuminated the pouring rain.
The security gates at the edge of the driveway had been violently forced off their concrete tracks.
Three shapes dressed in dark raincoats were moving across the green lawn, carrying heavy crowbars and a industrial hydraulic cutter.
They weren't surveyors. They were clean-up crews.
âTheyâre coming for the ledger,â Chelsea whispered, her breathing rapid.
âLet them try,â I muttered, my heart hammering against my ribs.
May you like
âGrandpa didn't just leave us land, Chelsea.â
âHe left us a fortress.â
