Page 86 of Iron Willed Warrior

The woman was going to draw half the resort guests here to find out what was up. I had to get rid of her.

I pulled open the door, surprising her. Molly’s fist was still raised to keep knocking. “Make it fast, lady,” I said.

Molly puffed up, chin lifting. Then the woman actually barged past me into the room.

Fucking hell.

She squinted at the suitcase and my pack on the bed. Spun to face me. “I was watching you during the seminar,” she said, “and I’ve had just about enough. You’re taking advantage of that girl. Brianna deserves better than you, and it’s about time that somebody stood up and said it.”

Could I physically move her out of the room? Not a good idea. She might start screaming.

Hell, she deserved a medal for stepping up and doing the right thing. Too few people were willing to bother. “I’ll keep that in mind. But I’ve got a phone call. Excuse me.”

Instead of leaving, she unleashed a tirade about how I was obviously no good. A scoundrel. Not to mention too old for such a young, sweet girl. Jeez, Brynn had maybe donetoogood a job establishing her cover. What would this lady think if she knew Brianna Waverley was actually a former special agent in her thirties who’d put down a vicious mercenary just last night?

But this lady was taking up my valuable time. Minutes that Brynn and I couldn’t spare.

“Save your lectures for somebody who gives a shit, lady. Get out.”

Molly’s face went bright red. “You should be ashamed.” But my harsh words had done the trick. She took off in a huff.Finally.

As she left, I glanced into the hallway. O’Hanlon had disappeared, which bothered me. I’d prefer to know where he was. But I couldn’t worry about that right now. I was already off our timeline, thanks to Molly’s heroics. Dammit. I had to pick up the pace.

I grabbed our stuff and left through the patio door after checking the rear of the building. River had switched off any cameras that I might come across on my way. I set our bags over the metal railing. Climbed over into a flower bed. The curtains to the neighboring rooms were closed, and there was no sign of O’Hanlon or anyone else who worked for Westwick.

Still, I forced myself to walk calmly and casually around the side of the building. I was headed for the employee area. A bell hop passed me, looking curious, but he didn’t try to stop me. It wasn’t that kind of place. Guests had the right of way here.

I checked my watch again and saw with a surge of adrenaline that I was running out of time.

Seconds later, there were shouts from all over the resort. The fire alarm sprinkler system had just activated. Courtesy of River’s hack into the hotel’s systems. I didn’t get exactly how he’d made that happen, but it wasn’t my job to know or care.

This was the chaos we needed.

The alarm gave me an excuse to move faster, breaking into a run. When I reached theRoof Accessdoor, it was still closed tight, a new padlock in place. This morning, I had borrowed the lock from the gear compartment in ourvehicle and relocated it to this door while Brynn was getting ready.

She had a key to the padlock in her purse as well. But since the lock was undisturbed, that meant she wasn’t here yet. Thank goodness I’d made it first, and with probably seconds to spare.

Slipping the key from my pocket, I undid the padlock and got my ass up the stairs. Brynn would be on her way. She was with Westwick right now, leading him here. I had a soul-deep need to have her beside me.

Soon.

That padlock had ensured that no employees would be up here. I quickly set our luggage aside and went to the hiding spot I’d made for my goody bag. The syringe to knock Westwick out and bindings to secure him. I also had one of those huge bags designed for sports equipment.

In the areas below, people shouted and ran from the buildings to escape the water. Staff called for guests to remain calm, assuring them it was a false alarm.

When the sprinklers had started, that was supposed to be Brynn’s cue to draw Westwick toward the roof so they could continue their talk in peace. Even though I’d lost sight of O’Hanlon, and had no idea where Manning was, they would’ve been caught off guard by the fire alarm like everyone else. Same with Ryker. They were probably trying to save Westwick’s belongings from damage.

Brynn would get here any minute.

Checking my weapon yet again, I took up a position so I’d be out of sight when Brynn and Westwick arrived. I waited to hear the faint creak of the hinges on the roof door, followed by their footsteps.

Thirty seconds.

Two minutes.

Come on, honey. I need to see you and know you’re okay.

While I counted the minutes, I mentally rehearsed what would happen next. Brynn would usher Westwick onto the roof. I would strike immediately with the syringe to knock him out, and in the meantime, Brynn would head back downstairs to the parking lot. There, she would start our vehicle and pull it into the delivery bay, which wasn’t far.

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