If I could just see, I would know where to run.
I felt the familiar lush, thick texture of the carpet. I knew we were in Jean-Pierre’s room. Rafael loved cold marble floors. Polished and sleek. But Jean-Pierre preferred softness and warmth.
Okay. The balcony is on the right. I can run out and hit the staff’s balcony entrance.
I crawled away. Escape was the only thing that sat in my mind.
“The tracker is moving with her,” a man said. “She definitely has it on her.”
Of course they could see me with their night goggles. I couldn’t see them, but I kept on crawling, ready to bite or scratch out anyone who came close.
“Yes. It’s on her. Good.” The Devil’s voice sounded loud and clear. Too close to me. “Then, we’ll take her for now. I’ll kill her later.”
No!
“Misha said, not to kill any more people.”
The Devil growled. “Misha doesn’t have the fucking Corsican to deal with. Taking her buys us a travel route out of Paris.”
“Or, it blocks it completely.”
“Shut up and stick to the plan.”
“She wasn’t part of our plan.”
“But she was part of mine.” A shot came, and I knew the Devil had killed the other man.
My body trembled in the darkness. I paused, knowing that he could see me. He had on night goggles, and I was blind.
Seconds later, he grabbed me.
I beat at his head.
“I won’t be so nice.” He slapped me. My head rang with pain. Warm liquid dripped from my nose. I felt congested, like I had a cold. I blinked right as he lifted and slung me over his shoulder.
A door slid open.
No!
We stepped onto the balcony. The full moon glowed bright outside. Cool air whipped against my skin. I still had on the white gown, but it was now smudged and torn. I touched my nose and looked at my fingers. Blood drops dotted them.
The Devil kept me on his shoulder with one big arm. With the other, he took the goggles off.
Three men stepped onto the balcony. I had no idea where they’d come from.
Probably the staff entrance. Oh my God. Did they kill them too?
The men wore all black, with the same black masks as the Devil’s helper had. One went to the balcony’s edge, latched a metal hook to the railing, and snapped the lock. A long, thick black rope hung from the end. The man flipped it over the ledge. The long rope fell over and I stared at the length. It kept going and going.
No. No. No. We’re not going over the edge. We’re not.
I struggled.
He hit me. “Move again and I’ll just sling you over. What the fuck do I care?”
I sucked in my cry.
The man with the rope, stirred as he watched. “Who is this and why do we have her?”
The Devil growled, “Shut the fuck up and stick to the plan.”
The guy didn’t move.
For a moment, I thought he might feel some sense of humanity and help, but fear filled his eyes, as he went back to work, hooked a different metal hook to another part of the railing and slung more rope over the balcony.
Another man spoke, “We couldn’t keep control the building’s system for long. The lights are back on. Rafael is close. Jean-Pierre too. They’re on the elevator. Men are running up the staircase.”
“They’ve been alarmed.” The Devil took me to the edge. “Plan B.”
No. No. Please, no.
In a flash, he slung one leg over the railing. “You better hold onto me, princess, and not struggle or you’ll fall.”
I gazed down and shouldn’t have. My head went dizzy. My stomach crashed to the bottom of my feet, with no hopes to ever rise. Only street, iron gates and designer cars resided more than fifty feet below. Nothing to break our fall. Nothing to save me.
I hooked my arms around his neck and closed my eyes.
“That’s a good girl.”
And we fell, bouncing.
Ah!
My heart raced. Blood pumped fast through my veins. We bounced and then descended again. My feet numbed and prickled. Sweat dripped down my body. My throat burned like it was hoarse, and I hadn’t even screamed. We bounced again and fell one more time, before he carried me over something else.
Terrified, I opened my eyes.
He put me down onto a new balcony.
Okay. We’re still in the building, but three or four levels lower.
The balcony door opened.
Another man in black came outside. “That was too close.”
“It is, what it is.” The Devil guided me past him.
The man called after him. “Where are the codes?”
“Somewhere on the girl.”
They all stared at me.
What fucking codes?
The Devil pushed me into a dimly lit living room.
And then the fire alarms blared all around us.
Another guy got up from a gray couch. “They’re trying to clear the building. They hit the alarm. They trying to smoke us out.”
“We still need to get the codes before we leave.” The Devil stared at me. “Take off your clothes.”