Alice had said she had them, but I wondered what would happen if security was on the lookout, and would it stall Alice and her team, or the Germans. I hoped I wasn’t wasting time, but I didn’t want to run into trouble if Alice or anyone else was waiting to ambush me. At the very least, I needed to get out of here without getting kidnapped again.
I focused on the exits, including any windows I could spot. I checked hallways, and even some cameras that were focused on the parking lots.
Nothing. Tourists came and went, but no one looked like Axel or Marc. If Alice got rid of them, she did it while she was talking to me.
My heart pounded as I started to panic. I checked the screens again and again. I was anxious to leave, but worried if I did, I would miss a clue, or seeing Axel and Marc somewhere. As time passed, standing still became too much. If Alice was telling the truth, I had a day to get her access to the core in exchange for the guys. I was willing to sacrifice the German group to go to jail. Maybe it was wrong, but they dragged us into the middle of this in the first place.
I studied the exits, trying to figure out the best way to leave without getting caught. Would a quiet employee exit be better? Or should I leave through the public way? Public might be the better choice. If I was grabbed, I could scream bloody murder and get other people’s attention. I needed to get to Corey and Raven. They were the only ones left now. They were the only ones I really trusted to help, and yet I wasn’t even sure how to get to them without Alice or the others following. What happened to those Academy teams chasing us? Were they in trouble, too? Did they spot Alice? I didn’t have a way to contact them.
This was my fault. I told Axel to hurry along with a new plan to chase the Germans out, not realizing there was another team ready to swoop in. He had said we weren’t really sure what to expect, and we needed to be careful. Why didn’t I listen?
I stood for as long as I could to be sure I wasn’t going to miss Axel or Marc by leaving. “Oh,” I told the security guard, pointing at a random screen. “I see them. By the turtle tanks. Just like I thought. Thanks!”
The man coughed and nodded, but he was still focused on his phone. Not caring and having no idea that two grown men could have been kidnapped under his nose.
And he’d never know.
I rushed out of the security office and stopped, checking the hallway and trying to figure out my plan. Even if I got outside, I didn’t have keys to the car.
I reached into my pocket and felt for Avery’s business card. I didn’t know anyone else’s number anyway. I wasn’t even sure if I should call him. It was risky. There was a lot of danger out there and I was calling him back into it.
It was either this, or I took my chances alone at this point. As tempting as it was, walking the streets of downtown Charleston was making me a target, considering there were two teams keeping an eye on me. I needed a quick getaway for now.
I found an office that was empty, and helped myself to the telephone. I pulled out Avery’s business card and dialed.
A mumbled yawn greeted me at first. “Yo.”
I hesitated. Hearing his voice made me second guess calling him in. “Avery?”
There was a pause and fumbling and a crash on his end of the line. Heavy breaths muffled the phone. “Kayli?”
Did he fall out of bed? “Are...you okay?”
“Fine! Fine. What’s up? Need a ride?”
Good question. Where was I going? I had to forget the hospital. If they found the real Corey, then Brandon would be in trouble.
While I was considering, he continued, “Is this about your kidnapping? You know, I’ve been thinking. Maybe you really should call the police.”
“Not really an option right now,” I said. “If you aren’t busy, could you give me a ride?”
He shuffled on his end of the phone. “In trouble?”
Yes. “Maybe.”
“Where are you?”
“The aquarium.”
He laughed and then stopped. “Oh wait, you weren’t kidding?”
I bit my tongue, wanting to get him to hurry up, but not wanting to make him panic bad enough to call the police himself. Every minute I wasted, I wasn’t getting this core, and Axel and Marc could be dying. “Avery... I don’t have a lot of time.”
“Okay, I get you. Let me get there.”
There was movement and shuffling, and I heard the clank of keys. I thought I was supposed to hang up.
“You still with me?” he asked.
“You don’t have to keep me on the line.”
“Probably better if you are,” he said. “If I hang up, I might not be able to call you back if something goes wrong. And if you get kidnapped, I probably want to hear for clues, right?”
True enough. “Just hurry.”
“Got you, got you, okay.”
I was quiet as I heard him walking, getting in the car, shuffling, starting the car, grunting, sneezing, driving, cursing at other drivers.
I shifted my weight from one foot to another, trying to settle my heart. Every moment lost, and Axel and Marc might be dying from poison. I was considering my options as to how I would get Axel and Marc back, and I still didn’t know where Brandon was. Getting to the core meant using Corey. All roads seemed impossible.
There was a gentle knock at the door. I jumped, and considered if it was another employee. Getting caught by security and thrown out for invading someone’s office would suck. I pulled the phone away from my ear, and ducked under the desk. I held the phone to my chest and waited.
There was a long silence, outside of Avery on the phone calling my name.
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I smothered the phone deeper between my breasts, trying to drown him out and listen.
There was an outline of more light as the door opened. Then the door closed again. It was quiet. I waited, listening.
But I still felt it. A presence. It was like when my father would sneak into the hotel room, right before he started beating on my brother and I. Was it someone who owned this office? Or that security guard? Or...
I didn’t have much of a weapon outside of the phone in my hand, but I’d use it if I needed to. I prepped myself, getting up on my hands and knees, ready to dive and bite to get out of here.
Pant-covered legs appeared. Male, for sure, just from the style and shape and the shoes. I held my breath.
Whoever it was started to bend over.
Panic seized me. If it was Alice or her goons, I was cornered and only had one shot. I put the phone down quietly and then lashed out, ready to take down whoever it was and then run for the door.
I connected with knees. A dead weight dropped on top of me, crushing me underneath. A hand reached around my mouth, grabbing before I could call bloody murder.
Still I fought, I bit at the hand, I bashed at a hip with the end of the phone. Like hell I was going to be kidnapped again.
Up until I realized whoever it was wasn’t really fighting back. He wasn’t doing anything except trying to still me.
I dared a look back, trying to figure out my attacker, and finding a pair of cerulean eyes.
For a moment, my heart lifted. Corey? He was here? How...
But I was wrong, because there was a bit of light and the eyes were ones I’d seen a thousand times behind my eyelids since the night before, haunting me because I wasn’t sure I’d ever see them again. There was that constant gaze, an underlying sadness and depth of emotion that threatened to swallow everything around him up.
Unmistakable.
Brandon.
ESCAPE
The moment I stilled, Brandon lifted me off the ground until I was standing.