Page 145 of Terror Tuesday

I blink back tears as my heart warms. “And I love you, V. We’ll do this. We’ll get it done for the good of everyone at NU.”

Neither of us says a word about what could happen if things gowrong.

forty

The soft raingradually turns to snow. It’s the first week of December, and colder than the previous ones I remember. Maybe the gods know what we’re about to do.

My gun is in the holster on my hip, trusty knife in my pocket. I have a full hooded mask on, along with sleek black leggings, boots, and a jacket zipped up tight. Vanq mirrors my style. Or I his, not sure. Either way, the clock is about to strike and the power set to blow out on a timer.

Vanq’s gloved hand slips into mine and squeezes my fingers. I can’t see his face, but he gives me a nod and presses the mask to mine for a moment. “You ready?”

“Yes.”

But I’ve never been more scared in my life. Even my back feels sweaty. I swallow and look up at the windows mirroring the night. The president’s house looms large from the safety of our little hideout at the edge of the woods. All we need to do is scale the fence and enter the library window on the side.

“From here on, no talking,” he reminds me.

My arid mouth can only whisper a reply. “I know.”

Before we left the mansion, we didn’t say goodbye. Not even “I love you,” because I think it’s too painful to think about the possibility of something going wrong.

When the lights on the back porch suddenly shut off, we’re left in almost complete darkness.

“Let’s move,” Valen whispers, and I follow behind him.

The iron fence is tough to climb, but he helps me over, catching me on the other side. As soon as my boots hit the frozen ground, I duck and run toward the side of the house like we discussed.

Despite a few bare shrubs, the window is easily accessible and slides open without making a sound. Something Valen made sure of all those weeks ago. He scales his way in silently, then reaches for my hand, guiding me inside.

It’s silent in the library, where I first saw him without his mask. He pauses by the door, cracking it slowly, while holding a finger up to me to remain quiet. I’m betting it’s less that he thinks I will and more that he’s as nervous as I am that something will give our positions away. The hinges, fortunately, give a barely noticeable squeak. Otherwise, it swings open without notice.

Our boots crawl over the marble tile. Every few feet, he pauses, listening. I follow directly behind him, copying his movements. My lungs ache from the breaths I hold inside.

Carefully, he creeps up the stairs. I follow once he waves to me from the top. The rich carpets soften our steps, but there are no other sounds. Without any power, everything seems dead inside. Eerie.

My ribs ache from how hard my heart pounds against them. Sweat steams inside my gloves. A tiny inhale helps to clear my head until we can proceed farther into the house.

A short hall leads us to the double doors that open into the president’s sitting room in front of his bedroom…where he should be sleeping.

Valen quietly opens one and squeezes in with me right behind him.

Blue light filters in from outside and streams across his bed in the next room. A large lump lies in the center of the mattress. Still. Not moving…

We’re almost there.

Every creep forward sends my pulse racing faster than it was before. I can’t hear anything other than the blood gushing in my ears. Valen reaches the side of the bed and freezes.

There’s something…not quite rightabout the figure before us.

Straightening, Valen rips back the covers, unveiling a pile of pillows made to look like a man.

We halt at the sound of a creaking step behind us.

A dark, cloaked figure looms in the open doorway, the sight turning my blood to ice. He points a blaring flashlight in our faces, blinding me temporarily.

Valen reaches for his gun—and my heart jumps in sync with his. I mirror the motion, fingers trembling as I lift my own weapon, terror clutching my spine.

But movement flashes in my peripheral—too fast.