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My chest heaved with my gasps as I tried to draw in breath. I wanted to see, but the chance had gone. Not even a sliver of light pierced the darkness. I now wondered if I’d ever heard a bird. How could I have, without a window? More likely it had been another way to mess with me, considering they’d known when I woke up.
I was now truly alone; the only reminder that anything had even happened was the clammy wetness along my cheek.
But as my fear began to finally abate, one infinitesimal amount at a time, I realized something—something huge. A fact I’d overlooked because of my terror. The men had worn masks. They’d been terrifying and horrific, but they weren’t just to scare me. I hadn’t seen a single face.
And that told me one thing. For all of their confident statements, these men were still concerned about showing me their identities. They still thought I might escape.
That one thought buoyed me as I tested the ropes around my wrists. If they worried I would get out, that meant there was a way out. And if there was a way out, I was going to find it.
THREE
ella
Shai slammedto a stop in front of the dark laundromat. It felt like the entire neighborhood was asleep.
“I’m going to find a place around the side to park where the cops won’t see it the instant they show up,” Shai said as the other three of us jumped out of our seats. “Charity, you find a way in.”
Charity nodded and jogged purposely toward the front door. We all knew how to pick locks, but Charity was renowned for her speed at getting into any secured room.
We had about a twenty-second wait before Charity threw open the door and we slipped into the laundromat. The door had a bell, so we’d have a warning if anyone else appeared.
“Clear the place and then we’ll start our search,” Charity whispered, pointing in two different directions.
Nadia and I nodded as we each pulled our guns. We wouldn’t have done that if the cops had been there, but the silence meant that if anyone was in the laundromat with us, they weren’t allies.
We split up, sweeping through the Laundromat. Our flashlights roved over washers, dryers, and carts for lugging clothing.
“Clear,” Charity called out from the back room she’d taken. Nadia and I matched her call seconds later. The place was empty.
The doorbell jingled and we all looked up to see Shai.
“Found anything?” she asked tersely. She would have sounded demanding if we weren’t already kicking ourselves that we hadn’t uncovered anything yet.
“We just cleared the space, but so far nothing,” Charity said, disappointment plain in her tone.
We all felt the same way. If we’d found someone, it would have been like hitting the jackpot. A human clue was always the best kind of clue.
But we were alone. And although that meant we were safe, it also meant Aria still wasn’t.
“I’d give us about five minutes before this place is swarming with cops. Let’s use those seconds wisely,” Shai said. She was already scouring the floor and each of the washers and dryers.
Charity headed toward the back room that she’d cleared. Nadia joined her, so I stayed out front with Shai, dropping to my knees to look under the heavy machines.
“A single business card on the ground brought us here. We only need that much for our next step toward Aria,” Shai reminded me.
I nodded.Please, just one clue.
“I’ve got something,” Charity called out.
Shai and I sprinted toward the back of the laundromat. We passed a few desks and joined Charity at an open door.
“The bookshelf seemed oddly placed. When I pushed on it, this popped open,” Charity explained.
Shai was already through the doorway, walking down a set of stairs.
“It feels just like the tunnels under the bar,” she called back to us.
Nadia went next, followed by me and finally Charity. I knew that the ‘muscle,’ as we called Shai and Charity, would want to flank Nadia and me. I winced as I remembered that Aria had also been our muscle, but forced myself to focus, following closely behind Nadia. Technically Nadia was just an attorney, our legal voice out in the field, and I was a negotiator. But since those skills weren’t always needed in combat, we had been trained to be assets in other ways as well. I might not have quite the physical skillset Shai possessed, but I could hold my own in a fight. Not only had I been through Aurora’s severe and strict training, but I’d also done basic training along with all of the other rigors of being a Marine. Still, I didn’t mind Charity’s protective measures, even if they were unnecessary.
