Chapter 9: The Power Grid Trap
The mansion's exterior floodlights flickered once, twice, and then died completely, plunging the grand courtyard into a deep, velvety darkness punctuated only by the pale, ethereal glow of the moonlight breaking through the high canopy of the pines. From inside the black SUV, I watched the thermal silhouettes on Vance's handheld tablet react instantly to the blackout. The three bright amber figures near the mudroom paused, their weapons coming up in unison as their tactical helmets switched to infrared vision.
"They're disoriented," Vance muttered from the driver's seat, his fingers flying across the override console to kill the vehicle's internal lights. "The IR shift takes at least ten seconds to adjust from full glare to total dark. We have a window."
"Move," I commanded softly.
Vance shifted the SUV into four-wheel drive, letting the heavy diesel engine roll forward in total silence without touching the accelerator until we cleared the gravel driveway and hit the damp earth of the unpaved service road. Behind us, the massive oak doors of the mansion creaked open as the tactical team breached the empty foyer, their flashlights casting long, stabbing beams of white light across the empty hallways and the abandoned pink birthday cake lying shattered near the coat rack.
I looked down at Mia. She had shifted in her sleep, her small face pressed tightly against the fabric of my black polo shirt, entirely unaware that we had just slipped out of the trap by a margin of less than twenty seconds. The silence inside the cabin was absolute, save for the rhythmic hum of the motor and the distant, muffled shouting echoing from the open doorway of the house we had just abandoned.
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"We're clear of the perimeter," Vance whispered over his shoulder, his eyes locked on the rear-view mirror as the dark bulk of the mansion receded into the pine trees. "Heading toward the secondary extraction point at the old rail depot."
"Negative," I said, resting my chin against the top of Mia's blonde head. "Change the route. Head for the federal storage vaults off Highway 9. If Tina traded our access codes, the local checkpoints are already compromised."
