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As Tido watched the man slip out of the room, he was torn between two conflicting thoughts. One side begged him to follow and potentially save himself from danger, while the other warned him that it could be a trap. He hesitated, unsure of which choice to make.
In that moment, he questioned if it was worth risking his life for the unknown. But then again, you only lived once... and he was hoping to live a little bit longer.
Rather than making his way to the stairs, he led Tido to the far end of the hallway and tugged on a hanging cord. Suddenly, a trapdoor gave way, complete with a set of rickety ladder steps.
“The attic,” he whispered. “Move up the steps as quietly as possible.”
The guy went first. Tido looked over his shoulder and noticed the voices had fallen silent. That couldn’t be a good sign. Ignoring the ominous feeling creeping all over him, he cautiously ascended the stairs. As he reached the top, the stranger abruptly closed the trapdoor behind them, plunging them into complete darkness. Tido's heart raced as he realized he was completely at the mercy of this mysterious figure.
Then a dim light clicked on.
“I’m William,” he said.
“Tido.” Tido wondered if he should have introduced himself. He didn’t fully trust the man and preferred to remain anonymous, but it felt impolite not to give his name after William had shared his own.
Tido’s manners just might get him killed.
The dusty attic was crammed with boxes, towering like skyscrapers in the dark space. Among them, old toys lay scattered and forgotten, the glassy eyes of the dolls seeming to follow his every move. The thought sent a shiver down his spine. A full-length mirror stood against one wall, reflecting the dim light filtering in through a small window. Covered items peeked out from under white sheets like ghosts haunting the space. And a layer of thick dust coated every surface, untouched and undisturbed for who knew how long. The musty scent of age and abandonment hung heavy in the air, making him feel like an intruder in this forgotten place.
He followed William to a window toward the back. When he opened it, Tido saw there was a landing below it. There was rather large drop to get to it, but since Tido was terrified of heights, that small drop looked a million miles down.
“It’s the roof to the back porch,” William said. “You can use it to scale down and make your escape.”
“Why are you helping me?” Tido asked. He should just get his butt going, but he was afraid of what he might find once he was on the ground. At least in the bedroom he was locked in a room. Out in the open, he was even more vulnerable.
He could just see his headstone now. Here lies Tido Macon. Too stupid to live.
“What are you waiting for?” William stared strangely at him. “You really need to go.”
“Not until you tell me why you’re helping me,” Tido demanded in a whispered tone. Then he sneezed. Damn dust.
“Not everyone agrees with what Luther and Kramer are doing,” William said. “Maybe some want to make up for their atrocities.”
“Aren’t you going to get into trouble helping me?” Tido looked out the window, his heart racing like crazy. That really was a long drop.
“Not if you hurry up and get out of here.” William nodded toward the window. “You can do this.”
Tido really was considering going back downstairs. But something egged him on, pushing him to take the risk. So he drew in a deep breath, mustering up all his courage, and cautiously maneuvered himself out the window until only his bottom was perched on the narrow sill. With a grimace, he twisted his body, feeling his stomach press uncomfortably against the hard edge of the window frame. Slowly, he lowered himself down, his feet dangling precariously in the open air.
He closed his eyes and said a quick prayer before he let go. Tido started to scream, but his feet hit the roof of the porch before he could get a sound out.
When he looked back up, the window was closed.
Tido peeked over the edge, telling himself he was almost on the ground and to stop panicking that he was going to fall to his death. The drop wasn’t that far.
He froze when he heard something creak. He pushed backward out of sight and waited, but when the noise didn’t repeat itself, he hurried over the edge. When his feet hit the grass with a quiet thump, a small part of him sighed in relief before he took off at a break-neck speed, unsure if he was going in the right direction but determined to get as far away from Luther as possible.
Unfortunately, Tido didn’t make it very far before he was tackled. He hit the ground, and a hand slammed over his mouth. He was getting sick of people covering his damn mouth.
“Don’t make a sound.”
Wait. Was that Kenji? The voice was low and filled with a growl, but Tido was almost positive that the growl belonged to his mate.
The hand slipped away, and Tido was turned over. He damn near cried when he saw that it really was Kenji. Tido threw his arms around Kenji’s neck and hugged him, refusing to let go.
“We have to get out of here,” Kenji whispered into Tido’s ear as he extracted Tido’s arms from around his neck. Kenji got up and then pulled Tido to his feet. “Keep low and quiet.”
Tido nodded, unsure he was really seeing Kenji. This just didn’t seem real.
