staircase. She tucked the files under her jacket and into the waistband of her pants, covering them with the back of her shirt. Weapon in hand, she crept down the stairs, paying extra attention to the shadows and scanning constantly for enemies.
When she reached the second-floor landing, Maisie felt a strange sensation of awareness. The fine hair on the back of her neck stood on end as she realized there was someone behind her. A split-second later, a large hand cruelly grabbed her upper arm and stripped away her weapon. She reacted defensively, swinging out her elbow and twisting her arm back while kicking out at her assailant.
He was so much stronger and taller. The blond giant used his leverage to subdue her. Refusing to be captured by this brute, she took a page out of Terror’s fighting handbook and chomped down on his exposed hand, biting so hard she felt the burst of blood on her tongue. He tried to pop her with his other fist, but she managed to duck at the right moment. The sharp movement caused her teeth to tear through his skin, and she could feel his roar of pain rumble through her chest.
She opened her jaws and spit out the blood coating her tongue. He struck her this time, his open palm cracking her cheek so hard she fell backwards onto a pile of rubble. The sharp edges of the stone bit into her upper thigh and hip, and she grunted in pain. He caught her ankle, dragging her closer, and she grappled for a weapon, finally wrapping her fingers around a chunk of stone.
He yanked her off the ground, and she came up swinging, clutching the stone in her hand. She slammed it into his jaw, splitting the skin wide open and sending him reeling backwards toward the stairs. Dangerously close to the busted wall, he caught himself at the last moment and lurched for her. He stumbled as he caught hold of her jacket and swung her around forcefully. She tripped over his feet and threw him off-balance.
In a terrifying moment that seemed to unfurl in slow motion, his hands tightened on her jacket as their shared momentum caused him to fall out of the gaping hole in the wall. She didn’t stand a chance at breaking free from his grip. Her stomach dropped in a painful lurch as they fell out of the building and straight down onto the dangerous rubble littering the courtyard.
He hit first, and she landed on top of him. The impact drove the air out of her lungs, and she gasped panicked breaths to refill them. The jarring shock of falling two stories made her head pound. Her joints burned, and she mentally catalogued her bones to make sure none of them were broken.
Her assailant hadn’t been so lucky. He had landed on a pane of dirty, jagged glass that had sliced open the back of his neck all the way to the shoulder. Foaming blood bubbled out of his mouth and gushed out of the gruesome wound, soaking the rubble around him in crimson. She scrambled off of him, kicking aside the hand that clutched at her for help.
She swayed on her feet and stumbled forward to retrieve her weapon that had fallen near his feet. She bent down to grab it—and a boot slammed into her side. The force of the kick sent her airborne, and she landed on her belly on top of a slab of stone. Her hands shook as she tried to push up from the stone and get back to her feet.
Her new attacker snatched the back of her jacket and hauled her off the stone as if she weighed no more than a small child. Desperate to escape, she lifted her arms straight up over her head and started to wiggle free from the oversized jacket. A blast of cold air on her belly heralded her escape, and she slipped out of the jacket.
The second attacker was too quick. He grabbed her before she could get far and took hold of the back of her pants. He lifted her by the belt and waistband and carried her away from the dying man who had attacked her first. She tried to fight off the man holding onto her pants. She clawed at his arms and legs, but he was made of stronger stuff than the first man. He seemed determined to get her some place private.