Chapter 5 - The Glass Escape
Arthur didn't flinch. The shock that had paralyzed him moments ago evaporated, replaced by an ancient, iron resolve. He reached into his coat pocket, pulled out a thick leather wallet, and tossed a stack of hundred-dollar bills onto the table without looking at them.
"Maya, grab the bread," Arthur commanded quietly, sliding out of the booth. "Leo, stay close."
"Sir, you can't leave through the front," Leo warned, watching the three men in raincoats push past the host stand, their hands reaching into their lapels.
"I built this block fifty years ago, Leo," Arthur replied calmly. "I know where every brick leads."
Arthur grabbed Maya in one arm, took Leo’s hand with the other, and pushed through a swinging double door marked STAFF ONLY.
The kitchen erupted in chaos as line cooks shouted in French, but Arthur ignored them, navigating the narrow, stainless-steel corridors with practiced ease. He reached a heavy red fire exit door at the back of the kitchen, kicked open the panic bar, and shoved the children out into the torrential rain of the alleyway.
CRACK.
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A high-caliber gunshot shattered the glass window of the exit door behind them, showering the asphalt with sparkling green shards.
"RUN!" Arthur roared, ushering the kids down the slick, wet alley toward a waiting black sedan parked beneath a fire escape.
