Page 36 of Seduced By the Mermen
“No, Delmar says they’re stuck. It’s not moving.” Alexei holds up his block to show us what? Proof that I need to smother Sterling in his sleep. I might need help if he wakes up. I glance over at Clark.
Clark puts his arm over my shoulder. “Stop it. We need to be on our best behavior. Unified, not acting like podlets. And no, I’m not helping you murder Sterling.” How did he know what I was thinking?
“It would solve a lot of our problems.” I throw my hands up. “I’m kidding. Mostly. Why is the elevator not moving?”
Alexei’s immersed in his block. “Clark called it; Sterling hit the stop button. Grayson hit the go, over and over until the thing gave up.” His brow furrows.
“What?” I’m over to him and trying to read over his shoulder. But he tilts the block away from me. “What?”
Alexei stands, shaking his head. “Yeah, that won’t work,” he says under his breath.
“What won’t work?” Forrest stands too.
“Maintenance wants them to shift and break the glass. They’re dealing with another issue right now. Airlock in a flat downstairs.”
“Well, that’s obviously not going to work. I’ll message the director of the building now.” Forrest’s heels thud across the floor, and he vanishes down the hall to his office where he must have left his block.
“How are they going to get Blair out of there?” My stomach flips, bile rising up my throat.
Alexei positions his back to me.
“I’m not freaking out. Relax. I’m sure Blair would have been fine in the lift if Sterling hadn’t mucked it up. But you can’t expect her to hold her breath and swim to an airlock.” I don’t mean to raise my voice, but fuck, the frustrating phobia is getting in my way. It’s not logical on land, and they’re right, it’s nonsensical in the Veiled City.
Then Alexei’s shoulder twitches. His whole back twitches, and a full body shake goes through me.
“Obviously, that’s not the solution.” Alexei’s finger flies over his block.
“Fuck the Tinom dome. We need a new dome,” I say.
Clark moves next to Alexei. “You know that’s not true. There’s nothing wrong with our dome. The lift is a rotten shrimp shell, but we can fix it.”
I raise my eyebrows at him. “She’s got to be scared out of her wits.” I wrap my arms around myself.
“There’s got to be another solution.” Alexei puts his block face-down on the sofa table.
“Is there?” Because I’m betting whatever they come up with, not getting that hunk of junk to move is going to lead to one sweet female having nightmares she doesn’t deserve. And what follows will be her never speaking to us ever again. Let alone wanting to join our pod.
My throat is closing up. I have no idea where all this negativity appeared from. Even in my career, even with what happened to our former mate, Anya, I was the voice of reason. The silver lining. Things worked out until they didn’t. Then, especially when they didn’t.
With Blair in my arms the other night, it felt like things were going our way again. Like an invisible block had been cleared. Like moonbeams through the dome, breaking through the layers of water, illuminating the way for the last half of our lives. And I’m fucking pissed that I can’t see that future anymore. Both for us and for her. I don’t want her to end up with some clownfish like Kade Driftwood. Everything Forrest has shared with us about Blair, and everything she told us about herself, says she deserves better. Fuck, she deserves better than us.
Forrest’s thumping announces his arrival before we can see him come around the corner of the main hall. Clark, Alexei, and I are staring at him when he bounds into the room. “We’ve come up with a solution. It’s not good, and she’s not going to like it. But it’s the safest thing we could think of.”
“And?” Clark’s on his toes, ready to jump down Forrest’s throat.
“They’ve found a welder’s kit.”
“Scuba gear?” Clark asks.
“Yes. A maintenance team’s going to have it ready for her. The guys will hold her up, break the glass and shift. It’s not an elegant answer to the problem.”
“No, that would be fixing the damn lift car.”
“It jumped the track. It’s being held down by the emergency cable.”
“Fuck, that’s the answer. Who are you talking to? Give me your block.” Clark holds out his hand, and Forrest gives it to him.
He’s messaging, and his lips are moving as his fingers speed over the block. He winces, and three furrows appear between his eyes. “Because it will work,” he says to the screen.
