Chapter 14 - The Sea Cave Exit
He ran down the darkening corridor, carrying his daughter through the thick, choking smoke that was rapidly filling the basement.
At the far end of the wine vault sat an old, heavy iron grate—the historical sea cave access door that had been built into the cliff side a century ago to allow smuggled goods to be hauled up from the cove below.
The iron latch was rusted, sealed shut by decades of salt air and neglect.
Julian set Lily down, grabbing a heavy stone masonry hammer from a utility shelf nearby. With frantic, desperate strength, he slammed the hammer against the rusted padlock.
BANG!
BANG!
CRACK!
The ancient iron shackle snapped. Julian threw open the heavy iron door, pushing Lily through the opening into the cool, fresh night air outside.
They stumbled out onto a narrow stone ledge carved into the face of the cliff, fifty feet above the crashing waves of the North Atlantic. The torrential rain hit Julian’s face like a blessing, washing away the soot, blood, and chemical residue from his skin.
Behind them, inside the mansion, a massive explosion tore through the ground floor as the main gas line finally ignited.
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A towering plume of bright orange fire burst through the roof of the Blackwood Estate, illuminating the dark storm clouds above in a terrifying, magnificent blaze. The heavy steel shutters blew outward, sending shards of glass and twisted metal raining down into the sea below.
Julian held his daughter tight against his chest on the narrow ledge, watching the magnificent, multi-billion-dollar fortress burn to the ground, taking all its secrets, poisons, and horrors with it into the ash.
