Page 3

It was…well, hot. Like,really hot.

I stood up straight as I watched the rest of him disappear into the hole, and then his head popped back over the opening. He rested on his knees, bending forward as he extended out his left arm. I reached for him, my hand gripping his forearm as his fingers wrapped around mine. Then he began pulling, his other hand dashing out to grab me around my upper arm, and my feet were lifted off the floor and into the air.

My own muscles bulged and strained as I tried to hoist myself up into the darkness. As my body rose into the tight space, I had nowhere to go. It left me with little choice, and I made a quick decision. My free arm gripped Wes’s tactical vest, fingerslooping around the various belts and straps. While keeping hold of me with one arm, his other arm dropped lower, wrapping around my ribcage, fingers grazing just under my breast as he grunted with the effort. And then, we came to the tipping point. We both fell backwards into the vent, me on top of him.

I knew I should move—pronto—but I needed a second to catch my breath. And I think he did too, because his arm remained wrapped around me, limp as I felt his chest heave with heavy breaths. And it was…weird. But also, kind of nice.

Wait, what? No! This is not what we’re doing.I shook my head, clearing the fog and confusion, and pushed myself off his chest. He cleared his throat and shifted out from underneath me.

“Edith says to go down until we hit the fork and make a left. We should pass three receiver vents, and then we should be there.”

“Right. Let’s go.” I reached into one of my many pockets and pulled out a small head lamp. Wes did the same. We slipped them on and switched the light to red to keep our night vision intact, and then he was off, crawling through the duct in front of me.

It didn’t take long at all, which was an extremely good thing since time was of the essence, and we didn’t have a lot of it left. When the time came, we turned left, and then kept crawling past the three vents Edith had mentioned. On the fourth one, Wes stopped and stooped his face low, gazing through the grate. After a moment, he lifted himself back up and slipped his fingers through the holes and tugged. The grate popped out of place, and he slid it aside. Poking his head into the room below, he took a quick look around before glancing at me.

“All clear.” Then he was sliding his legs over the opening and dropped himself into the room below. I crawled over and did the same, landing in a vast office. My eyes took in the dark room—navy blue carpet, white walls, and deep cherry wood furniture.Everything had a golden touch to it, showcasing this person’s wealth and opulence. My eyes then landed on the desk—ornately carved wood, a gilded desk lamp, stacks of files, and a computer. That was our target, and I didn’t waste any time.

I marched to the other side, my hip bumping the chair that rolled away easily as I tapped the keyboard, bringing the monitor to life.

Password.

“Wes, I need the decoder.” But I didn’t even need to finish the sentence. He was already slinging his pack off and pulling out the thin, silver device about eight inches long and five inches wide. He was at my side in a moment, pulling out a cord that he plugged into the computer before plugging the other end into the decoder. He tapped the screen of the device, typed into it, and then it started flashing numbers and letters with such speed, I couldn’t make out a damn thing.

“This is going to take a minute.”

I looked at my wrist, the screen coming to life on my tab, revealing the timer. Fifteen minutes. We only had fifteen minutes before all the cameras were going to come back to life. “We’ve got to hurry.”

Wes’s face remained like stone, giving me the impression of an Adonis carved out of the most flawless marble. Perfectly chiseled cheekbones, angular firm jaw, and dirty blond hair that complemented the hazel of his eyes. He stared at the screen, eyes intent but revealing nothing. I fixed my gaze on the computer and watched as letters and numbers began appearing in the box asking for a password.

XM445TXM

The computer responded just as the decoder flashed the same code on its screen. “We’re in.” Wes began unplugging the device as I leaned over the keyboard and started typing.

“You need to find the files for the Bellfire Tower.”

“I know.” Duh! My fingers worked vigorously, typing in keywords, clicking different files, and then starting over. All the while, Wes paced the room like a caged lion eager to be released.

“Let’s go, Mara,” he pushed.

I ignored him, scanning the words on the computer, searching desperately for the right file. “Got it!” My eyes pored over the screen. It was a map of the tower.

Wes trotted to my side and bent down to look at the monitor. “Where is it?”

“Looks like west…on the coast.” My hand ran the computer mouse across the desk, clicking on a link. “It’s…it’s a peninsula. Some sort of peninsula.” I glanced over at Wes, catching his intent stare on the screen.

“What cellblock is he?”

I shook my head, returning my focus to the computer as I clicked on another file, looking for the link that was going to give me the information I needed.Inmates…I needed to find their list of inmates.

Wes moved at my side. “Fuck.”

“What? What’s wrong?”

“We’re out of time. We’ve got to go,now.” He marched away from me, running to the door of the office.

“I’m almost done. Just give me a sec—”

“No, Mara. We’re done. Let’sgo.”