Page 87 of Deceptive Vows
Elena’s eyes widened. “What do we do?”
“We keep going. Whoever’s up there, we need to be ready to move.”
As I worked on the lock, the sound of conflict grew louder. Footsteps pounded down the hallway outside, followed by raised voices.
“They’re coming,” Mira warned, now free from her cage.
I doubled my efforts, feeling the mechanism start to give. Just as the bolt slid free, the lights flickered, plunging us momentarily into darkness before emergency lighting kicked on, dim red bulbs casting sinister shadows.
“Power’s compromised.” A grim smile spread across my face. “That means the electronic lock?—”
The card reader went dark. The security system failed with the power outage. I pulled the door open a crack. Two guards were running away from us, toward the sounds of fighting.
Working methodically but quickly, we freed the remaining captives. Alexa was the last. Whatever drugs they were giving her were still very much in her system, making every one of hermoves sluggish.
“What’s happening?” she asked, voice slurred, eyes darting to the crimson glow.
“We’re leaving,” I told her firmly, steadying her arm.
The power was compromised. Someone or something had hit the system hard.
With all ten women free, I assessed the situation outside. The corridor was empty, but the sounds of conflict grew louder.
“Listen to me,” I said. “We’re going to move together, stay quiet, and head for the stairs. Our goal is to find an exit and get away from the building.”
“I know the way out.” Natalie spoke up. “There’s a service exit at the end of the east corridor.”
With a deep breath, I led the group into the corridor. The emergency lighting cast everything in a bloody glow as we moved as quickly and quietly as possible.
At the first junction, I paused, listening. More gunfire erupted with shouts following. A distant explosion shook the building, sending dust raining from the ceiling. The vibration traveled through the concrete floor into my bones.
“This way,” Natalie whispered, pointing to the right.
The floor was cold beneath our feet, our breathing taking on an unnaturally loud quality. Each time a distant gunshot echoed through the halls, I felt the women behind me flinch in unison.
We had advanced barely twenty paces when boots on concrete echoed from ahead. I signaled the group to halt, pressing them back against the wall as I peered around the corner. The rough texture of the concrete scraped against my palm, grounding me as my heart hammered against my ribs.
Through the dim red glow, I caught glimpses of movement, figures advancing methodically down the corridor, checking rooms as they went. Not the chaotic retreat of Marco’s men, but the disciplined sweep of a trained team.
My heart clenched painfully as a familiar silhouette appeared, broad shoulders, and the outline of a beard against the red-tinged darkness. Even hunched and favoring one side, he moved with that slow, deliberate control. For a moment, I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think, couldn’t move.
It wasn’t possible.
But as he turned, there wasno mistaking him.
Nazar.
Alive.
A tsunami of emotion crashed through me, a relief so intense it was almost painful. I'd given him up for dead, and now seeing him striding through this hellish place hit my soul with a force that cracked something inside of me. Hope, pain, and love… all flooding back in one brutal, beautiful rush.
“Stay here,” I whispered to Elena, my voice barely audible over the pounding of my heart. “I’ll be right back.”
Before she could respond, I slipped around the corner, keeping to the shadows, my gaze fixed on the impossible apparition moving steadily away from me.
If it was truly him, if by some miracle he had survived, everything would change.
And if it wasn’t...
