Chapter 18
I pulled the Kahr K-9 out of my scarf-belt and held it at the ready as I began to ascend the stairs. I paused for a second and hastily tied the scarf around my nose and mouth—it would help at least a little. I heard a noise just behind me, and whirled around to find one of the tall, crazy-outfitted partygoers crashing back through the entryway.
“Get out!” he cried, shielding his face from the smoke. I took the opportunity to hide the gun behind my back. “You have to get out, now!”
“I’ve got to help my friend. She’s upstairs.”
“I’ll come with you.”
“No. It’s too dangerous. Make sure everyone outside gets the help they need. Don’t let anyone back in.”
He didn’t seem happy about letting me stay in the building alone, but he nodded anyway. “I will.”
“Wait! Did you happen to see a tall blond girl, gorgeous beyond compare, out there?” I hollered down at him.
“Only about a dozen.” He disappeared out the door.
I raised my gun. This time no one would be following me, I would be following them. I carefully made my way up the inside of the steps, my gun pointing up and ready to fire at anyone who dared to look over the rail. The fire seemed to be losing its power, but it released smoke with a vengeance. I was grateful for the scarf.
That’s when I heard Jeremy calling my name. I turned, trying to make him out through the smoke.
“Get out here, Hadden. That’s a direct order,” he sputtered. The guy who’d called to me to get out earlier was holding him up.
I was halfway up the stairs already. I couldn’t respond or the bad guys would be able to pinpoint my position. Instead, I leaned down to see if I could find a visual pathway to the door to alert Jeremy to my precarious position. As I did, I caught sight of Summer up the stairs by way of a mirror. Our eyes locked in the reflection. A man had a gun pointing at her temple, her upper arm held tightly in his hand. At the same time, I noticed a guard with a gun in his hand coming up behind Jeremy. I had enough time to save one. But only one.
I made a quick assessment. It had to be Jeremy. I didn’t have a direct line on Summer and even if I did, she was too entangled with her captor—if I shot I would risk missing my target and hitting Summer. Instead, I spun and shot the man coming up behind Jeremy in the only place I had a direct shot, his head. The guard fell back, and the man holding Jeremy up gave a shriek, throwing his hands in the air and letting go of Jeremy, who immediately slid to the floor without the extra support.
I turned quickly and aimed opposite the mirror, but the people from the reflection were gone. I moved like a cat up the stairs, almost silent and with a speed I didn’t know I had in me. I wasn’t sure anyone but Summer knew that I was there. I’d seen her in the mirror, and the man holding her captive had been looking in a different direction. At the top of the steps, I found an empty landing area.
I carefully made my way through the floor, clearing each room. They were not there. I heard hard steps on the ceiling. The roof. There must be a secret passageway up there. I didn’t have the time to waste to look for it. I climbed out the same bedroom window I’d climbed in earlier, and made it to the edge of the roof and carefully peered over. Three guards stood on the roof. One talked into his com. The other two talked to each other, one with his hand tightly on Summer’s upper arm and a gun pressed against her temple. All three were within six feet of Summer.
I thought about the shots I’d taken with this Kahr K-9 and the shots the previous owner had taken. Added up, it was a total of six. That left two, maybe three, if he hadn’t taken any shots before he came into the dungeon, and still had one left in the chamber. I prayed for more ability than I had so that Summer could be saved and the bad guys would pay for their crimes. I dug the tips of my toes into the grooves of the bricks and threw myself up into the air. Like my whole body somehow slowed down, I was able to steady my hands as though I were standing on solid ground. I pulled the trigger twice in quick succession and landed on the edge of the rooftop.
The first shot whizzed through the small opening between the guard and Summer, hitting the guard’s gun startling him into dropping the gun over the edge of the building. His hand released Summer’s arm, and he spun in the direction the gun flew.
The second bullet whizzed toward the guard on the com. The bullet hit his shoulder, and he bent over in pain. I shifted to aim at the third guard. Click. “No!” I yelled, pulling the trigger again and being rewarded with more clicks instead of the bang of a bullet leaving the barrel. The guard leveled his gun at me. I flew to the side to avoid the bullet. It hit something behind me with a loud zing.
Summer took advantage of her freedom and flew through the air, kicking her legs up and smacking that third guard in the face. The hit forced
