David's breath froze in his throat as his eyes met the desperate eyes behind the dirty glass. The woman inside tapped weakly on the pane, her pale lips moving frantically, forming silent words that David couldn't hear through the thick glass frame.
David: Clara! Oh God, Clara!
Lily: See? I told you Mummy was down there!
David: Stay back, Lily! Stand behind those trash cans and don't move!
David looked around the alley for anything heavy. He spotted a rusted iron pipe lying near a heap of construction debris. He grabbed the heavy pipe, lifted it above his shoulder, and slammed it against the padlock on the metal side door. The metallic clang echoed loudly through the narrow alleyway.
Voice: Who the hell is out there?!
The steel door suddenly swung open from the inside. A large, heavily bearded man stepped into the threshold, holding an iron crowbar. It was Richard Vance, his face hardened by years in prison, his eyes flashing with sudden rage as he recognized David standing in the alley.
Richard: Well, well. Look who followed the little brat back to the nest.
David: You sick bastard! You staged the crash! You took my wife!
Richard: She was the price you paid for ruining my life, David! You took my company, my money, my reputation! I took what meant the most to you!
David: Where is she?! Get out of my way!
Richard: She's been living in darkness for three years, David! Every single day you spent in your cozy life, she spent locked in a concrete room! And you're never getting her back!
Richard lunged forward, swinging the heavy crowbar with brutal force toward David's head. David ducked under the wild swing, the iron bar whishing through the icy air inches from his ear. David charged into Richard's midsection, driving both of them down onto the frozen concrete of the alley floor.
David: You stole three years of our lives!
Richard: I'll take the rest of your life right now!
Richard swung his elbow back, striking David hard across the jaw. Pain flared in David's head, but he refused to loosen his grip. The two men wrestled on the snow, rolling near the open doorway. Richard grabbed a heavy brick from the crumbling wall, raising it high to strike David.
Lily: Stop! Don't hurt him!
The child's scream distracted Richard for a single split second. David used the opening to drive a hard right fist straight into Richard's chin. Richard's head snapped back, the brick slipping from his grasp as he slumped backward against the cold metal doorframe, dazed and bleeding.
David: Stay down if you want to keep breathing!
David scrambled to his feet, gasping for air, his knuckles bruised and bleeding. He didn't waste another second on Richard. He turned and rushed down the dark, damp concrete stairs leading into the basement below.
David: Clara! Clara, where are you?!
Clara: David? Oh God, David! Is that really you?!
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