Grace turned around and squinted in the dark. There! It was lying precariously on the work table below the pegboard on the wall. She saw that the head of the axe was pointed towards her, hanging off the edge of the table by a few inches. It made the edge of the axe at an angle that she could use to try to cut away the rope at her wrists. Well, something was finally going right.
Grace turned around and did her best to position the rope around her wrists to rub against the edge of the axe. She wondered if the axe would be dull or…oh my gosh, holy shitake mushroom...yep, it’s sharp alright. Grace felt blood trickle down the side of her hand where she had just sliced it open. Let’s try this again. She rubbed the rope against the blade again, and it landed on the rope instead of her flesh. Brownie points for Grace.
As best as she could, Grace rubbed up and down, trying to cause enough friction to cut through the rope like a hot knife through butter…and just like that the rope broke and her hands were free. She stumbled back with the feeling of freedom of her hands and arms for the first time since waking up. Grace’s arms were killing her. They felt tingly and a little numb, but the pain shooting down both of them from being held at an awkward position for so long was excruciating. See, this is the perfect reason why I am not into bondage! Grace could picture the laughs she’d get from the girls after that statement and the eye rolls and flushed cheeks she’d get from the guys.
Since she was now free to move around better, she needed to figure out if she was trapped in here, or if the door was unlocked. Also, if Officer Smith was anywhere around here. She had no clue how far away from the reception she was. It couldn’t be too far, but she hadn’t noticed the storage building before when it had been daylight, so it may be on the other side of the lake or something. Grace peeked out of the small window and paled at what she saw.
Officer Sloan Smith was kneeling down in the grass, hidden behind some tall industrial barrels, with an automatic rifle, several shot guns, and .45 caliber hand gun in his hand. Grace could tell he was aiming at something beyond where Grace could see. He was ready for an ambush and whoever it was wouldn't stand a chance, especially with a trained cop with an automatic rifle. Grace couldn’t imagine anyone else besides Cade and Walker being the subject of Smith's interest. They probably couldn't see him from the view point Smith had, being hidden behind the barrels like he was. They and anyone else coming to him were definitely targets to get picked off one by one. Grace felt her stomach roll and she honestly thought she was going to throw up. A deep breath helped slightly.
Grace couldn’t let an ambush happen. Time to be bad ass Gracie. She saw there was a door on the opposite side from where Smith was sitting outside the building, so she made her way there and silently checked to see if it was locked or not. Score! Not locked.
Now to find something to use as a weapon. She looked around and saw the axe, some chain, oars and heavy lawn care equipment. She almost picked up the axe, but thought better of it. She would be able to cut him, but probably not immobilize him if she needed to. She picked up an oar off the floor. It had been broken obviously and had a jagged edge to the end. She could hold it better this way than if it were whole. The wide oar part could be used to maybe stun Smith enough to get Walker's attention. Maybe. Grace sighed inwardly. This was all day dreaming if she couldn’t get out of the storage room silently and sneak up on him.
Grace looked around and her gaze quickly came back to another window that had been hidden in front of her until now. Propped up kayaks had partially blocked it from her view. It pointed in the direction that Smith was looking. Grace peeked out the glass as best as she could. It showed a larger expanse of the shore and inland. She could actually see faint lights of the reception building. And there! She could see some pin points of light bouncing around, as if they were being walked and waved around over the expanse of the grounds. Flashlights! They were flashlights. And if she were a betting woman, she would say those flashlights were being held by a couple of gruff, handsome men.
Grace was so happy she could cry. Someone was coming to save her. Oh crap! Those saviors were about to get their butts fired upon by Smith unless they knew ahead of time or Smith couldn’t act out. Grace grabbed the broken oar and the axe, just in case. You never know! She slid out of the side door, without making noise at all. She could be a slick little monkey when she needed to. She didn’t have much light to help her find a good path to walk, but she was able to come around to the other side of the building where Sloan Smith was. She winced as her feet encountered glass or sharp pebbles. The bottoms of her feet felt like they were being shredded.
Grace could see Smith as he crouched behind the barrels, waiting in the darkness for an opportunity to open fire. Nope, not on her watch!
