Page 75 of When Monsters Fight
Bastian yanked open the door into a small cylindrical room with pipes built into the wall either side of a series of metal rungs leading to a large grate in the ceiling.
“Basement access,” Bastian said.
Our gazes locked, and my lungs grew tight.
“I’ll go first,” Gabriel said.
He moved fast to get to the grate and then shoved it openwith a snap of metal and a scrape of rust. He didn’t look back before leaping out, and my heart hammered against my ribcage, the urge to call out to him an itch in my throat.
His face appeared in the aperture above. “All clear. Come up.”
Bastian ushered me up, following close behind.
The basement was damp and smelled of mildew, weak moonlight filtering in from a tiny window high up toward the ceiling.
“This was part of the old building,” Bastian whispered. “But according to the plans, it still connects to the hub. There’s a storage space, then the main building.”
“Kabiel will be storming the main entrance any minute,” Bee said.
“Good.” Gabriel led the way up the stone steps to the basement door. “We’ll wait till the security alarms go off.” He tested the door. “Locked.” He twisted hard and pulled. The door gave. His eyes gleamed in the gloom. “Not anymore.”
We didn’t have long to wait before a shrill ringing beat against the basement door.
Gabriel gave a nod then threw the door wide. The alarm blared loudly as we filled the storage room.
Gabriel beelined for the main door and peered out into the corridor. “It’s clear.” He closed the door and turned to Bastian. “We go right?”
“Yes. Zaq knows the way. The security room is left and up a floor.”
We waited a few more seconds as the alarm continued to blare. If anyone had been on this side of the building, they would have had time to rush toward the main entrance by now. Anyone that was left we’d have to deal with.
This was it.
This was the moment.
Bastian’s team would go first. They had to shut down the security systems, so…
My gaze tangled with Bastian’s to find my turmoil reflected back at me. He pulled me in for a hug, resting his cheek on my head. “I’ll see you afterwards. I love you.” He pulled away enough to cup my face and press his lips to mine. “I love you so much.”
“I love you too. Be safe. Please.”
“I will. I promise.”
I turned to Bee and hugged her too. “No heroics.”
“Same to you.” She gave me a squeeze.
Gabriel stepped away from the door, pulling me back against his chest. I leaned into him, my eyes burning as Bastian turned to the exit.
He looked back one more time, the corner of his eyes crinkling in a smile.
Then he was gone.
I took a shuddering breath. “Fuck.”
“They’ll be okay,” Gabriel said. “We can do this.”
I had to believe it. “How long do we wait?”
