sadness, or at least some shame watching this happen right before my eyes. The truth is, I feel neither. At this moment, I’m numb, the void of feelings is confusing, but also liberating.
When the man lies dead on the floor, Zane searches him and takes his gun, giving me the sign to keep going. My feet move on their own, following Zane to wherever he is leading us.
Tiptoeing down the stairs, we make it through the kitchen and to the backdoor. There is no noise, no talking, nothing that makes me believe someone has seen us, but not seeing any other guards raises a huge red flag. When Zane turns the door handle, and we find the door unlocked, I really start to get worried. Can we really have that much luck? I doubt it.
It’s like we’re waiting for the other shoe to drop, the only question is, when? Hesitantly, I follow him outside and into the darkness. There is no light, only the stars above to guide the way. Through the darkness, Zane finds my hand, intertwining our fingers, and together we run across the lawn to the nearest line of trees.
Fear and adrenaline pump through my veins, and we’re so close to freedom I can almost taste it. We keep moving, getting further and further away from the house, but not far enough away before all hell breaks loose. Loud yelling carries across the yard and through the trees from the house, it has us both looking over our shoulders.
The once dark house is now lit up like a Christmas tree. Every room in the house has its lights on. The doors and windows are being opened, and men in troves start storming out the back door that we escaped from.
Shit. I knew it was too good to be true.
With a panicked expression, Zane turns to me. “Run!” he whisper-shouts, already pulling me away. Racing through the wooded area, low hanging limbs whip across my face, scratching my skin. The adrenaline coursing through my veins, keeps me from feeling the pain yet, but I already know it’s going to come later.
We run until we get to a large wrought iron fence, built in a way that makes it impossible to climb, leaving us with only one way to go. To run along the edge of it and find an end. We don’t get far before we spot a guard tower ahead. Spotlights move across the lawn, searching for us like magnifying glasses.
“Let’s backtrack,” Zane says, the uncertainty in his voice is hard to miss.
We spin around, ready to head back the way we came when we see them. A couple yards away, some men are walking, they’re headed right toward us, the beams of light from their flashlights flicker as they close in on us.
Fear bubbles up inside of me. Now we have nowhere to go. We’re surrounded, trapped like mice. Apparently, Zane isn’t as worried, or maybe he is just better at hiding it because his face doesn’t show an ounce of fear. Instead, he acts like we’re playing a fun game, rather than one that could get us both killed.
“Hide behind that tree,” he orders, pointing to a group of trees a short distance away before heading straight for the search party.
“Zane,” I hiss through my teeth, but he must not hear me calling his name because, like a rocket, he’s off, charging toward the group of men like a Viking.
Turning on the balls of my feet, I run in the direction he pointed. Flattening myself against the tree, I push my back into the bark and listen to the sound of men fighting. Skin hits skin, and grunts and groans fill the brisk air, making my heart race faster with each passing second.
We aren’t going to escape, there’s no way.
Lights flicker over where I’m hiding, and I spot more coming our way. Do I run or stay hidden? I decide to run. Twisting around, I step away from the tree just to come to a sudden halt once more. Ice fills my veins when I see three of Matteo’s men pinning Zane to the ground.
“I will fucking kill you,” he growls as he struggles against them. His voice is so vicious and dark, it even terrifies me.
Through the tree branches, I can see Matteo walking across the yard. It’s hard to make out his features, but even from a distance, I can make out his angry scowl.