Page 91 of Burdens
Noah shot him a look above my head before he briefly kissed me. “Save it,” he replied. “I love you, too, but you can tell me later because you’re not allowed to die. I’ll see you soon.”
As we parted ways, I headed for the right side of the house with Nassim while Jamal and Noah headed for the front.
Adrenaline coursed through my veins as Kai fired instructions in my ear. I drowned his voice to a low dull at the back of my mind and concentrated on moving faster as I led Nassim into the house.
We moved quietly, our senses on high alert. We made it down the first hallway toward the stairs without difficulty, but as we carefully climbed them, two shadows loomed closer, but their steps weren’t in a hurry.
We paused at the edge of the staircase, listening closely. “It’s a disaster out there. Can’t we just stay here and pretend we didn’t hear anything?” one of them said.
I peered over the corner, just enough not to draw attention, only to see the other guard had paused in his steps. “If you want to get slaughtered by Hamza or even worse Barrera himself, be my guest. I’m not risking their wrath.”
The moment he turned back around, I emerged from behind the wall that was hiding me and drove my knife across his neck, blood spattering over my hands.
The dead body dropped at my feet, and I pushed the body down the stairs and out of my way.
Noah had moved behind me while I took care of the man now slung across the steps, just in time to aim two bullets into the other guard in the chest before he shot me, his body slumping to the wall and his gun skidding across the floor.
Nassim mumbled, “You’re welcome,” as I reached for the dead guy’s gun on the floor and headed down the hall with Nassim following right behind.
I checked the chamber to find it full before tucking it under the waistband at my back since both my thigh and shoulder holsters were already full of weapons.
We cleared the floor, room by room, before moving to the floor above and doing the same. We hadn’t encountered anyone else as we finally made it to the top floor.
With no one in sight, I beelined for the painting at the end of the hall, Nassim right on my trail.
I sheathed the bloodied knife back into the strap around my thigh and pushed against the ornate golden frame, my gun drawn up.
A strong musty and damp smell wafted out. I scrunched my nose as we slowly ventured into the dimly lit space, navigating down the narrow hall with caution.
We eventually rounded a corner, only to be met with another long corridor that eventually fed into numerous pathways, each one identical to the last.
Dread swept through me at the sight, knowing we couldn’t waste any more time. In my three years here, I’d heard whispers about hidden halls and tunnels but never actually found them to explore them and find out where they led.
I glanced back at Nassim. “We’ll need to split up.”
“Oh, absolutely not,” he countered, shaking his head adamantly.
“We don’t have time to check each of them together.”
“I don’t care. I’m not particularly looking to get shot today,” he insisted.
I sighed. “Noah won’t actually do it.”
“I’d rather not test the theory.”
I groaned. “Fine, then you choose, so I can blame you if we get lost.”
Nassim began muttering under his breath, pointing his gun down each corridor as he followed the melody. “A jrada malha, fine kounti sarha?1,” he recited softly.
My brows furrowed. “Are youseriouslybasing your choice on a nursery rhyme?”
He ignored me and quickly finished singing. “That one,” he announced, gesturing the corridor to the far left with his barrel. He looked at me and shrugged. “I have to start practicing for the little one, and this made the decision faster.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose in exasperation.Por el amor de Dios?2.
With no better plan and already enough time wasted, I sighed and stepped into the hallway he’d randomly chosen.
But as we made our way down the hall, Nassim spoke again. “Besides, I already knew which one to take,” he admitted in a hushed tone.
