Chapter 4 - The Tearing of the Wood
Julian threw Evelyn back into the arms of two nearby security guards, stepping over the sledgehammer resting on the floorboard. He knelt down directly in front of the broken drywall, his expensive leather shoes stepping without hesitation into the white plaster dust and debris.
The boy inside the cavity shivered, locking his wide eyes onto Julian’s face.
"Hold on, son," Julian breathed, his voice cracking with a terrifying mix of grief and explosive adrenaline.
Driven by a primal surge of desperation, Julian reached his bare hands directly into the narrow gap between the wooden studs. He gripped the thick timber blocking the boy's body, his knuckles turning stark white as he threw his entire weight backward.
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The wood groaned under the unnatural strain. Fibers snapped with sharp, gunshot-like reports that echoed down the long hallway. Splinters tore through Julian’s skin, leaving crimson streaks across the wood, but he didn't even flinch. With a final, explosive roar of effort, Julian snapped the central stud in two, ripping the jagged wooden bars away and hurling them over his shoulder onto the marble floor.
He reached deep into the dark void, wrapped his strong arms around the child's tiny, shivering waist, and lifted him out of the wall into the warm light of the crystal chandelier.
