"Mom!" Julia yelled, her fingers aching from the death grip she had on the balcony's iron railing. Her feet dangled precariously over the edge, a forty-foot drop to a road below. "Mom!"

Someone was coming through the room, fast-paced. Shots were exchanged. Julia held her breath and tried not to look down. "Come on, Mom," she whispered.

More shots, and a chunk of plaster was ripped off the column closest to Julia. It fell, gashing open her leg from knee to ankle. She fidgeted restlessly, her fingers anchored around the railing.

A figure burst out onto the balcony. Julia looked up, surprised at the dark-clothed figure who appeared.

"Dad?"