Chapter 7 - The Clock Ticks Down
The air in the basement instantly changed. A sharp, loud hiss erupted from four industrial nozzles mounted high on the concrete walls. White, freezing clouds of concentrated gas began pouring into the room, rapidly displacing the oxygen.
Noah immediately began coughing, his eyes watering as he clutched his throat. "I can't breathe!"
Sarah grabbed her heavy tactical jacket, wrapped it around Noah’s head, and pulled him close to her chest. "Cover your mouth! Don't inhale deeply!"
She rushed to the heavy steel emergency exit door at the end of the hallway and threw her weight against the push bar. It didn't budge. The magnetic lock was engaged, sealing them inside the concrete vault.
Sarah stepped back, drew her firearm, and fired three heavy-caliber rounds directly into the magnetic lock mechanism on the doorframe. Sparks flew, and hot metal shrapnel ricocheted off the concrete, but the heavy steel door remained locked tight.
The gas was rising rapidly, reaching their waists. The temperature in the room dropped precipitously, frost forming on the edges of the metal lockers.
Sarah’s lungs burned. Dizziness washed over her as the oxygen level plummeted. She knew she had less than sixty seconds before she lost consciousness, and Noah had even less time.
She looked around frantically. There were no windows, no other doors.
Then her eyes caught the industrial freight elevator at the far end of the hall—a heavy wooden-platform lift used for moving engine parts between floors. It was locked behind a steel scissor gate.
Sarah ran to the elevator, carrying Noah in her arms. She shoved her arm through the accordion gate, looking for the manual emergency release cable that all industrial lifts were legally required to possess.
Her fingers brushed against cold steel, but she couldn't reach the lever.
"Noah..." Sarah gasped, her sight beginning to blur into black spots. "Reach your hand... through the gate... pull the red lever down!"
Noah, shivering violently beneath her jacket, thrust his small arm through the narrow gap in the steel grid. His small fingers strained, reaching upward. He caught the tip of the red plastic handle with his index finger.
"I can't reach it!" he cried, tears streaming down his frost-dusted cheeks.
"You can do it, Noah!" Sarah choked out, falling to her knees as her body began to fail from lack of oxygen. "Do it for your mom! Do it for your dad!"
With a desperate, final surge of energy, Noah screamed, stretching his small shoulder through the metal bars. His fingers wrapped around the handle, and he pulled down with all his body weight.
CLACK-CLACK-CLACK!
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The mechanical safety lock disengaged. Sarah summoned every remaining ounce of strength in her body, grabbing the heavy scissor gate and hurling it open. She threw Noah onto the wooden platform, crawled inside, and slammed the manual override handle upward.
The ancient gears groaned, chains rattled, and the open-air freight elevator lurched upward, rising out of the choking cloud of white gas just as the basement completely filled with deadly fumes.
