Chapter 6 — Blocked Exit
Brenda stood up from the floor with the metal pry bar clenched tightly in her hand.
She blocked the narrow path leading toward the front door.
“You aren’t going anywhere, Dad,” Brenda said.
Her voice was low, steady, and entirely devoid of warmth.
Arthur stopped dead in his tracks.
His fingers tightened around his keys until his knuckles turned white.
“Don’t be ridiculous, Brenda,” Arthur snapped, his forced composure cracking completely. “I have things to attend to. Let me past.”
“Not until you explain what you were doing to the hallway molding,” Brenda replied.
She took a deliberate step forward.
“And not until you explain why you tried to frame my son for your mess.”
Ethan stayed sitting by the sofa, watching the confrontation unfold with fearful eyes.
“I didn’t frame anyone!” Arthur shouted, his voice rising sharply in panic.
He took a desperate half-step toward the door, his eyes darting frantically toward the heavy wooden exit.
“It was just an old frame! Accidents happen!”
“You didn’t just break a frame, Dad,” Brenda said, holding up the dark leather notebook.
“This ledger lists every hiding spot behind these walls. And this tool matches the pry marks on the paneling.”
Arthur’s face flushed a deep, angry crimson.
His defensive shouting escalated as he tried to push past her.
“Give me that book!” Arthur barked, lunging forward with a desperate grab for the leather ledger.
Brenda sidestepped quickly, keeping the notebook out of his reach.
The sudden aggressive movement left Arthur off balance.
He stumbled against the entryway table, sending a ceramic bowl crashing to the floor in a shower of sharp fragments.
A heavy, rhythmic pounding suddenly rattled the front door.
Someone was slamming a fist against the wood with urgent insistence.