Chapter 30 - The Sound of Footsteps
A sudden creak echoed above the bunker.
Everyone froze.
Henry slowly extinguished the lantern.
Darkness swallowed the room.
Only the flashlights remained.
Another sound.
Footsteps.
More than one person.
Moving carefully across the broken floor of the ruined lookout tower.
One rescuer whispered,
"They found us."
Henry shook his head.
"They've known this place for years."
The footsteps multiplied.
Someone outside spoke quietly.
"They're below."
Another voice answered,
"Seal the hatch."
Dust drifted from the ceiling.
The heavy steel door above slammed shut with a deafening crash.
The rescue team rushed toward the staircase.
Locked.
From the outside.
Henry calmly opened another cabinet.
Inside rested an old iron key attached to a leather cord.
"There was always another way."
He handed the key to Elias.
"The emergency tunnel."
Elias looked at him.
"Where does it lead?"
Henry smiled faintly.
"To the one place Nathan Cross never discovered."
As Henry finished speaking, a loud metallic bang echoed through the bunker wall.
Someone outside had begun breaking in.
The concrete trembled.
Small cracks spread across the ceiling.
Elias tightened his grip on the iron key.
May you like
Whatever waited beyond the emergency tunnel had remained hidden for decades...
And now it was their only chance to stay one step ahead.
