Red Awakening (Red Zone 2)

against it and her palms holding on to the flat surface in front of her, Keiko shuffled two tiny steps to the left.

“That’s good. You’re doing good. Now remember to breathe while you’re doing it.”

With his words, she started gasping in air and then caught herself. She needed to breathe slower. Excess oxygen would make her light-headed. And sixty-seven floors up was not the place to get light-headed.

“I can do this,” she chanted. “I can do this… I can do this…”

If Mace heard her, he didn’t comment. Without hesitation, he climbed out onto the ledge to stand beside her. His back was pressed to the wall, and it took her a second to realize he’d chosen that position because he needed the bulk of his body weight firmly on the ledge. Even flush against the wall, his toes would still poke over the edge into nothingness.

Her heart leaped into her throat at the sight. Abort. Abort, her mind screamed at her. “The ledge isn’t big enough for you. You’re spilling over. We need to go back inside.”

“I’ll be fine,” he said calmly. “I’ve dealt with worse.”

“Like what?” she demanded. “What could be worse than standing on a tiny ledge with no safety harness while terrorists hunt you down? What?”

Reaching out, he pressed a hand to the small of her back, which made her breathing ease somewhat. “Calm down,” he said, which had the opposite effect.

“I swear. Once I am off this ledge, I am going to hurt you,” she promised.

“That’s the attitude,” he said. “And to answer your question, back when I was an Army Ranger. I once had to walk a narrow ledge carved into a sheer cliff face. Felt like one of those crazy Alpine goats that scale walls looking for food.” He paused. “You ready to take the next step?”

NO! No, no, no, no, no…

“I’ll try,” she said out loud, tasting the lie in her words.

Her limbs had locked in place, kept there by the fear of making one wrong move and falling to her death. He rubbed his thumb on her back, making her aware of the firm, wide hand holding her in place, comforting her with his strength.

“I won’t let you fall. Concentrate on taking one step at a time. That’s all you need to do. Stare at the wall and take one step to the left. You don’t even need to lift your foot, just slide it along. There’s nothing on the ledge for you to trip over.”

She rested her forehead on the cool wall. “How are you so calm?”

“I’m calm because I know we’re gonna be fine. Take the step, princess. I’m here. I’ll keep you safe. Take the step.”

“I must be mad,” she muttered, but her foot slid to the side, and they moved one step along the ledge.

A barrage of gunfire sounded from beneath them, on the other side of the building, where the terrace was located. The sound made her quake. Was Abigail okay? Had she been injured? She wished her friend was with her—maybe not out on the ledge, though. Far beneath them, sirens blared, announcing the arrival of Territory Enforcement. How long until they dealt with Freedom? Would she still be alive when they did?

“I can’t stop thinking about falling.” Keiko glanced over at him. He hadn’t even broken out in a sweat. “The more I think about it, the more I’m sure it’ll happen.”

“Think about something else. But slide that foot over while you do it.”

“Just like that, think about something else.” But she took the step, shaking as she did it.

I can do this, I can do this, I can do this… lied the voice in her head.

“Tell me something you’ve always wanted to do. Bet it isn’t walking on a ledge sixty-seven floors up.” His smile was teasing.

“How can you joke right now?”

“Life is cruel. You gotta take your fun where you can get it. Now tell me something you want to do.”

There was no dealing with the man. And even though her voice was barely a whisper and her words trembled, she gave him what he wanted. “I’ve always wanted to go deep-sea diving.”

“Okay. Not what I was expecting, but that’s fine. It’s about as far from this situation as possible. Good call.”

She took the step as the wind whipped up around them and then calmed just as fast. A breeze. Not a storm. Just a breeze.

I can do this… I can do this…