swung the door shut and a clunk sounded it locking before his shadow shot away beyond the frosted glass.
Everyone but me and Rosa moved forward to pick up tools and Plunger started running his fingers up and down the furry length of a paint roller.
"There's nothing we can do," I murmured to Rosa who looked ready to lose it.
I took her hand and she met my gaze, her breaths coming heavily. "He can't come."
"He has to," I whispered urgently. "We don't have a choice. Everyone in this room is coming or we're not going to be able to do this."
"Who's coming?" Plunger purred as he stepped closer, still stroking that damn brush. I snatched it from his grip with a growl and he raised his grey eyebrows in surprise.
"Listen up! Grab that renovation shit and follow me!" Rosa hollered, gaining all of their attention and surprising me as she strode away. I guess she’d made her decision.
Her gaze roamed over all of them except Ethan who she pointedly ignored. She beckoned them after her and I growled at anyone who didn't immediately move, including Shadowbrook who was frowning in confusion. Eventually, he followed her too and we walked into one of the many CCTV blind spots towards the back of the cavernous library.
Rosa climbed up onto a table, planting her hands on her hips as she stared down at us all and I found myself standing beside Ethan as we watched her.
"What the fuck is this about, love? You're not taking charge of the fucking library renovation crew," Ethan mocked and Sonny and Esme growled dangerously.
“It’s real good, kitten, so hear her out,” Sin said excitedly, bouncing on the balls of his feet.
"Listen to her, Wolf," Gustard put in. "You're lucky you're here. All of you fucking are."
"What exactly are we doing over here in the reference section?" Pudding asked in his slow tone, gazing around the aisles, holding a step ladder in one hand like it weighed nothing.
"Maybe the Wolf girl wants a different kind of pack to please her down here in the dark," Plunger murmured hungrily from behind me and I grimaced.
"We're here…because we're escaping Darkmore," Rosa cut to the chase, her voice low and serious. "Every one of us in this room and no one else."
"What?" Ethan blurted, taking a step toward her, but I threw out an arm to bar his way.
"Listen to her," I said in a warning tone. "She's offering you your life back."
"We’re escaping?" Plunger asked excitedly as Esme, Brett and Sonny howled and hugged one another. "And how are we gonna get outta here, sweet pup? Do you know of a tight little passage we can wriggle into and crawl our way out of?"
"Not yet," Rosa said, grimacing a little at the way he phrased that question. "But you're going to dig one in your Order form, Plunger. Because you’ll be able to sense the magical detectors in the ground and avoid them." She took a syringe of Order Suppressant antidote from her pocket, showing it to him and everyone else.
Claud gasped, looking to me with his eyes shining and I gave him a smile. He was going to see his kids again. I’d made that promise and I planned on keeping it. He looked up at Rosa with gratitude in his gaze. “Thank you, Miss Rosa.”
She waved him off, but smiled all the same and I clapped Claud on the back with a smirk.
"Oh my sweet, hairy grandmamma's balls," Plunger said excitedly. "I will most definitely dig your hole, ma'am. I’ll dig it deep and wide so we’ll all fit snuggly in it together."
I grinned, ignoring the fact that Plunger was a total creep because who cared when he was the creep who'd be tunnelling us out of this place?
"Did you hand-pick all of us, hound?" Pudding asked Rosa, his eyes bright.
"Um, yes, sort of," she said awkwardly and Pudding smiled while Ethan frowned deeply.
"Well I've never been hand-picked for anything before," Pudding said. "And I would like to accept your invite to take me to the surface and escape from this prison. Yes, I would like that, hound."
"Good," Rosa said with a tight smile. "So, we have work to do. Is everyone in?"
Ethan looked shellshocked as everyone agreed quickly and I turned to him with my sternest glare.
"You're either in or you make an enemy out of everyone in this room. You sell us out, Shadowbrook, and I'll kill you myself. No one is fucking this up. We’ve put