AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Unfortunately, he did know. Max heaved out a sigh and decided to level with them because why not? They were all in the same boat. “Due to our rarity as potential mates, the VSB are likely hyperventilating to have us all under their thumb like this. Their main goal is to match us up with suitable bachelors—or bachelorettes, depending on your preference—and get an exorbitant matching making fee in the process.”
Absolutely dismayed, Dante protested, “But that’s…I don’t want that.”
“None of us do. Why they think this will work is beyond me.” Max raised his voice to yell at the door, “I already have a vampire boyfriend, assholes! I’m not interested in cheating on him!”
“You do?” Dante looked wistful.
“Hell yeah. Aren’t most of us found because we feed a vampire or have exposure over long periods, or so I understand…” Max trailed off. “Uh, wait, isn’t that how you guys figured out you were a potential mate?”
“Yeah. What about you, Jin?”
Jin sighed heavily. “Same, it was a feeding that tipped my partner off. Then I proved immune to Mesmerize, which sealed the deal. I’m…sort of dating said vampire. Honestly, the whole relationship is complicated.”
“Yeah, same here. I’m under contract with mine to be a blood slave, but we’re also dating…ugh, there’s no easy way to explain this in five sentences or less.” Dante’s expression screwed up in a grimace. “I’d love to sit and compare notes with you both, but let’s see if we can get out of here first.”
“Gotta say, I’ve already been in this room five hours, so let me save you both some time.” Jin started ticking things off on his fingers. “Door is reinforced, with some serious deadbolt action, and two guards stationed just outside. Only possible exit is the window. Window leads to a nice courtyard, so we might be able to exit that way, but I need a tool or something to dislodge the window from its frame.”
The way he phrased that made Max think he had a plan. “Dislodge? Can’t we just break it?”
“I’d rather not shatter glass. It’ll give the game away.”
“Ah.”
Jin added, “Most of the lackeys here are somewhere around the twenty-eighth generation, so they’re senses won’t be quite as heightened, but still. If we tip them off to our escape, it’s not going to end well for us.”
Max went to the window to get a good look at it. He could understand why Jin wanted to sneak out, because frankly, they’d be quickly overpowered if anyone heard glass shattering. But he had a hunch that getting out through the window might not be the hardest thing. Just because of the age of the building.
A five-second examination of the window, mostly the frame itself, proved him right. Bingo.
“Here’s the thing.” Max tapped lightly on the window frame. “This is a really old building. Hundred years old, give or take, that’s my guess. Which means all the original windows aren’t quite set right in the frames anymore, not after so much settling over the years. I can tell they’ve had to reseal it numerous times to help with insulation. This tells me that if we can undo the caulk, we can just pop the whole window out and be gone in seconds. I just don’t have anything that can cut through the caulk.”
Dante looked from window to Max. “You’re sure about that theory?”
“Architecture student.” Max gave him a sassy grin. “Trust me.”
Jin promptly bent down and retrieved a three-inch blade strapped to his ankle.
“You’re still armed?” Dante asked in disbelief.
“They did a piss-poor job of searching me,” Jin returned dryly. “I think they believe all vampire mates are delicate little flowers. Never occurred to them I’d carry more than a gun.”
Max beamed at him. “You and I totally need to be friends. Okay, Jin, let’s pop some sealant off and see what we have to work with.”
The knife’s blade was sharp enough to do the job, and with all the caulk removed, it didn’t take more than a glance to verify Max’s theory was spot on. The window had settled a bit crooked in the frame, and there were spots where a ridiculous amount of caulk had been applied to keep it in place and sealed. Max attacked the caulk with gusto, grinning as it started easily coming apart. The nails that had held in it place were so twisted and rusted they were easy to deal with. He pried them out without much trouble at all. This might actually work. No, it was working, as he felt a draft of the cold air seeping in.
“You got anyone coming for you?” Dante asked them both.
Max didn’t look away from his work as he answered, “Probably, why?”
“If they don’t come in time, just come with me, okay? Ayan—the sorta boyfriend I mentioned—his clan is crazy powerful. We can take refuge with them, and I’ll make sure you guys get home okay.”
It was a very kind offer and Max wasn’t interested in refusing him. “I guarantee you my boyfriend will tear this city apart looking for me, but it might take a while for him to figure out where I am. If he doesn’t show up soon, I’ll go with you and then call him.”
“Cool. Oooh, I think you’ve got it.”
Max was almost all the way around the frame. He got to the last corner and then gently pushed the top of the frame out, catching it before it could fall completely.
Jin caught the other side, and between them, they lowered it carefully to the ground. There, perfect, and not a sound to give them away, either.
