Page 14 of Kai
“You’re going out the window,” I whispered, tightening the straps. “I’m gonna lower you to the ground. When you get to the bottom, step out of the harness. Understood?”
She nodded, and not a single protest escaped her tight lips.
“Stand on the bed,” I instructed while I tugged on my gloves. “Leave the laptop case.”
“But—”
“No worries. I’ll bring it down.” I smoothed the length of rope and coiled it at my feet before I gripped it between my gloved fingers. “Step out onto the windowsill.”
“What if I fall?” She peered down at the five-story drop.
“You won’t fall.” I braced on my feet. “I won’t let you. Climb on the windowsill and sit facing me.”
Balancing a foot on the iron headboard, she lifted one leg and then the other until she perched on the window ledge.
“Now, straddle the window.” I held the rope taut as she did what I asked. “Good. Twist around, balance on your belly, and lower your other leg outside. Remember. I got you.”
She followed my instructions until the rope tightened, and she was in position.
“Excellent,” I praised. “Try to keep yourself facing the wall and use your hands to steady yourself on the building. Tug on the rope as soon as you are out of the harness. Sneak down the rocks as far down the cliff as you dare and wait for me there. Don’t let them see you. Are you ready?”
Not that she had a choice, but she gave another nod.
Working hand over hand, I gave the rig length, watching her sink below the window frame, until only her face and those icy blue eyes remained visible to me.
“Don’t get yourself killed,” she whisper-shouted. “Don’t leave me alone down there.”
“I won’t,” I promised.
Letting out more rope, I paced myself, but I sped up as the clatter of boots got closer. Two minutes into the hoist, three tugs shook the rope before it went slack. I leaped on the bed, leaned out the window, and glimpsed Cece, all in black, scurrying down the rocks.
She had heart, that woman.
The mercs made it to our level.
“Check the bathroom,” Booming Voice ordered. “Clear this floor. How the hell did we not know that this Astor princess had experience with booby traps?”
I chuckled without a sound. The mercs and their fucker-in-chief hadn’t realized I was here yet.Good going, Marine. I clipped my carbine and the laptop case to the front of my vest, strapped on my ruck, and grabbed the thick rope with a double grip. I’d planned on a controlled descent, but as I mounted the windowsill and twisted around in a crouch, the knob turned.
Fuck this.
I stepped out the window and launched into a controlled rappel. The old walls rushed before me. The heat of the synthetic twine came through the gloves as they protected my hands. I was three quarters of the way down when the blast quaked through the lighthouse and shattered the night’s stillness. Debris shot out the window, as did the flames and embers that rained on me. Smoke puffed out in a black stream. Screams rang out in the night.
The explosion must’ve lifted the bed. The rope dropped, presumably when the headboard jammed against the window. By then, I was nearing the ground. Still holding on to the rope, I dropped like a stone.
Shit. I stabilized my carbine and the case with one hand, tucked in, and prepared for the crash.This is gonna hurt a little.
I flexed my knees as my neoprene booties hit the ground, absorbing some of the impact. A shock jolted up my legs. My knees screeched as I rolled to minimize the blow, keep my bones from breaking, and prevent myself from falling down the cliff.
My ruck dug into my spine, my carbine smacked me on the arm, and Cece’s laptop case slapped hard against my tactical vest. Somehow, I steered myself off the ledge and avoided a catastrophic fall into the roiling breakwaters. I ended up colliding back first into a pile of rocks. The breath shot out of me.
Forcing my body to untuck, I sprawled on the ground, dazed and aching. The night sky whirled above me, a kaleidoscope of silver light and shooting stars that reminded me of Cece’s eyes.
Move, K-man, I reminded myself.Go!
I tried to suck in some air. Anytime now, the surviving mercs would get over the commotion that rocked the lighthouse, wise up to Cece’s escape, and disperse to chase us.
The rocks rumbled beneath me. The blowholes exploded, and spurts of sea spray rained down. Despite the pain throbbing in different places, I forced myself to inflate my chest and grabbed another breath. A loud gasp issued from my throat, a desperate inhale capable of ripping oxygen from the air. This time, the breath made it into my lungs.
