Chapter 4 - Shattering the Glass
The heavy glass patio door didn't simply slide open—it exploded outward along its aluminum tracks.
The heavy frame slammed violently against the exterior brick wall with a noise like a gunshot echoing through the quiet yard.
Elise flinched violently, her composure shattering as her hands jerked upward.
The crystal glass slipped from her fingers and crashed onto the concrete patio.
Ice cubes skittered wildly across the grey stone, and sharp shards of shattered glass caught the bright sunlight like scattered diamonds.
Arthur didn't give her a single glance.
He charged through the threshold like an animal breaking from a cage.
His crisp white dress shirt was unbuttoned at the neck, billowing out behind him as he ran.
His face was flushed crimson, his chest heaving with desperate, ragged gasps.
His fingers slid off the handle of his phone, dropping it onto the grass as he sprinted.
He covered the distance between the patio and the pergola in three long, frantic bounds.
The thick soles of his dress shoes tore up chunks of the manicured lawn as he planted his feet.
He dropped hard onto both knees at the base of the post.
The damp, muddy soil instantly soaked through the expensive fabric of his navy trousers, staining them black.
"Sophie!"
His voice broke on the second syllable—a hoarse, terrified rasp.
His large hands, usually so steady during multi-million-dollar negotiations, trembled so violently he could barely catch the rope.
The rough fiber strands dug into his palms as he clawed at the tight knot.
His breathing was a series of ragged, choked wheezes right next to his daughter's ear.
Sophie remained frozen, her cheek glued to the rough bark, too terrified to realize the rescue had arrived.
With a final, desperate wrench of his wrists, the knot gave way.
The heavy fiber rope uncoiled and dropped heavily to the dirt, lying in the soil like a dead snake.
Arthur reached around the wood, sliding his arms under her small shoulders and thighs.
He didn't care about the wet mud transferring from her pink dress onto his pristine white shirt sleeves.
He pulled her small, shivering body against his broad chest, holding her with a crushing force.
Sophie’s tiny, dirt-caked fingers reflexively clawed into the soft cotton over his shoulder, hanging on for dear life.
Dark brown smudges bloomed over his heart where her muddy shoes pressed against him.
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He buried his face into the warm nook of her neck and hair, inhaling the mixture of sweet baby shampoo, sweat, and panic.
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