Chapter 7

Someone was a banging on her door. Aeron was all set with people not letting her get a full night’s sleep. “Go away!” she yelled, throwing the pillow over her face. The light flicked on and Aeron groaned. She had equestrian in the morning—she really needed this full night’s sleep.

“C’mon, Aeron, you have to get up.” It was Luke. What the hell was he doing in her room at—she glanced at the clock—nine?—she had definitely thought it was later. Aeron sat up and gave him the death glare. “What?” he asked, slightly affronted.

“Did you die a little inside?” she asked, pulling herself out of bed. “Because that was my intention.”

“My soul is withering beneath the surface.”

She smiled at him, and took in his clothes—black. She raised her eyebrows at him. “Gear up,” he said, “we’re going to the club after all.”

It didn’t take long for Aeron to suit up, and she heard Shannon doing the same next door. Since she wasn’t sure what kind of mark they were going after—except it was at the club—she dressed in her leather-reinforced pants—flexible yet tough—and a matching corset top. It protected all the major organs, but left her arms with complete range of motion.

She knocked on the adjoining door. “Shan! You ready?”

“Just about.” There was a fumbling sound, and the door swung open. Shannon was also dressed in leather-reinforced combat gear—black pants and a v-neck top. Her red curls bounced damp around her face, and her makeup was half done.

“Do you know if Alicia is ready yet?” Aeron asked, trying not to laugh—Shannon looked like a half-beaten clown.

“She better be,” Shannon said, sliding a dagger into her boots. “I’m terrible when it comes to makeup.” Aeron smirked. The two girls headed to the living room. There was a lot of commotion. The boys were cleaning guns and checking weapons. Lesley was in the kitchen mixing both innocent and lethal concoctions. And Alicia, she was sitting on the coffee table, impatiently waiting for Aeron and Shannon.

“C’mon!” she said, waving Shannon over. “We have to be out of here in about twenty minutes.”

Aeron looked to Decius, who was filling clip after clip with rounds. “Where’s the file?  she asked. He pointed to a thick manila envelope on the counter. Aeron picked it up and thumbed through the contents.

“Well,” Aeron said, reading through the file. “The mark is a twenty-five year old male by the name of Kevin Wilson. He’s a small time hit man, who kidnapped an eight year old boy.”

“Why?” Decius asked.

“Probably got greedy for money on the last hit he did.”

“That’s why they should call the professionals in from the start,” Justin said, pretending to dust dirt from his shoulders.

“Well, regardless of the stupidity of the bosses,” Aeron went on, “the mark is now ours.”

“What are the weaknesses?” Shannon asked, walking over to take the file from Aeron. Aeron looked up and handed it over, a mild look of shock on her face. She always forgot how good Alicia was with disguises. Shannon’s wild hair was tamed in a tight twist atop her head. Her green eyes were now brown, and her makeup gave the impression of a woman much older than seventeen.

“Wow,” Aeron said, handing the file over and heading to Alicia.

“Weaknesses,” Shannon continued, and a slight blush colored her face. “Oh, great.”

“What?” Luke asked. He was now slipping weapons beneath his shirt, and Aeron had to fight off her own blush as her eyes fell on his chiseled stomach.

“Well, it’s just, he seems to prefers gingers,” Shannon said, going completely red now. Shannon was not an in-action girl. She did the planning and the clean up, but the action was usually left to Aeron—and sometimes Lesley.

“That’s fine!” Alicia said, a rare wicked smile crossing her face. Aeron groaned inwardly; it was the look Alicia got when she had a product she’d been wanting to try, but hadn’t had the chance.

“Alicia—” Aeron started, but Alicia was already throwing a cape around Aeron’s shoulders and pulling on a pair of rubber gloves. “We only have fifteen minutes…”

“We can spare an extra few,” Decius said. Aeron glared his way.

“Seriously, Alicia. I don’t think there’s time for a whole head dye.”

“Oh relax!” Alicia said. She took out a hair net with a life-like hairline cover. “I’m just going to put a wig on you, and temporarily dye your eye brows. It will only take about fifteen minutes—if you stop fidgeting.”

Aeron made her best effort to stay still. She trusted Alicia—always had with her personal appearance—but with the whole room staring at her she felt like a circus clown dummy being used to teach a how-to class. Shannon continued to look over the file while Aeron’s head and face were poked, prodded and brushed.

“So,” Shannon said, looking around the room. “Lesley, what have you cooked up over there?”

“The usual,” Lesley said, placing small vials inside her coat pockets. “There also a smoke cloud, knockout fumes, and a few explosives.”

“Any poison?” Justin asked.

“Well, yeah,” Lesley said, slightly offended . “But where’s the fun in that?” Aeron smirked. Lesley could be feisty, that’s for sure.

“So what’s our plan then?” Luke asked. He was staring intently at Aeron, who now had the red wig on, while Alicia worked on her eye brows and makeup.

“The usual, I suppose,” Decius said—trying to look anywhere but at Aeron. The usual involved Aeron seducing the mark, and getting him into the back alley where one of them would do the deed. They took turns killing the mark based off the requirements. It also allowed everyone to stay in practice. “Are there any special request in the file?”

Shannon skimmed to the back. “Yeah. No poison, no guns. They want a personal attack—it’s to send a message. And of course, bring home boy unharmed.”

“What’s this kid’s name? Is there a photo? Anything?” Luke asked, snatching the file from Shannon.

“Nothing.”

“Who’s the hire?” Decius asked.

“Oh, wait,” Shannon said, snatching the file back and flipping it over. “Just kidding. They also want him killed in his apartment. He always has a small entourage with him. They don’t care if they’re dead; just bring the boy, Chris, home safe.”

“This is pretty vague, yet oddly specific,” Aeron said, glad Alicia was done with her makeup.

“You should go change,” Alicia said, pushing Aeron back toward her room. “This isn’t going to be a tag and bag; we need him to bring you home.”

Aeron nodded, and she and Alicia headed, not to Aeron’s room, but to Shannon’s. Aeron waited while Alicia dug through the closet, finally pulling out a midnight blue cocktail dress and matching stilettos.

“You can leave the corset top on underneath. And here,” Alicia said, thrusting the stilettos into Aeron’s hand. “I believe these are the shoes with the pop blades.”

Aeron quickly changed her outfit. She glanced at herself in the mirror and paused—the woman looking back barely resembled herself. Long red hair tumbled around her shoulders, and her gray eyes were now mystic blue. Decius had been right; she did look good as a ginger. The dress clung to Aeron in all the right places, maybe a little too tightly. She and Shannon shared a similar build, but Aeron had a bit more curve to her body.

“You look amazing,” Alicia said, standing back and appreciating her own work. “But we have to get going.”

“Right,” Aeron said, pulling away from the mirror. The two girls returned to the living area where everyone had finished gearing up. Aeron felt naked without the feel of a dagger against her leg, and sent a death glare at anyone who looked as if they were going to say something.

“Let’s get this done,” Aeron said, grabbing a long jacket and heading for the door.

***

Club Sapphire was packed. Aeron glanced once more at the picture of Kevin Wilson before slipping into the VIP line with Alicia. Shannon and Lesley made their way into the regular line, while Luke, Decius and Justin headed for the back door. The line wasn’t too long, and Aeron and Alicia were at the bouncer before they knew it.

“Welcome to Thirsty Thursdays at Club Sapphire. I.D’s please,” the burly man said, with a no-nonsense attitude. The two girls handed over their I.D.’s—fresh off the machine. They had swung by their paper man on the way to the club. The bouncer turned them over suspiciously. “Sorry ladies,” he said, “I can’t let you in.”

“Excuse me?” Aeron said, with mild shock. “Perhaps you should look at those again, or we can wait while you call Tim.” The bouncer looked surprised at the mention of Tim’s name—he should, since Tim was the head of security and went by the name of Sean on the club floor.

The bouncer—whose nametag read Charlie—looked over the I.D.’s again and handed them back. “My mistake ladies, you have a wonderful night.”

Aeron stalked past him, but caught Alicia slipping him a hundred dollar bill. “No harm, no foul, Charlie,” she said, and followed Aeron into the club.

“Why do you bother?” Aeron asked, looking disgruntled.

“Bees and honey, Aeron,” she said smiling, and the two girls went their separate ways. It didn’t take long for Aeron to find Wilson. He was in the V.I.P. lounge with girls draped all around him. She took a deep breath, put on a sultry smile, and walked by—avoiding eye contact. He didn’t look her way. She tried again, this time catching the eye of one of his entourage. It would have to do for now.

“Hi,” she said, leaning across the V.I.P. bar. “What’s your name?” It was hard to hear over the loud music, and could have been along the lines of Adam, or Bill—it didn’t really matter. She smiled again. “What brings you out tonight?” she asked, leaning further in to hear him.

“Celebration! My buddy just closed a huge deal.”

“That’s great,” she said, bored already. “Would that be him there?” She nodded her head toward Wilson.

“Yeah,” Bill or Adam said, slightly put down. She needed to know how much pull Wilson really had over his men—time to change the game plan.

“Well, he seems awfully busy, would you like to come meet my friends?” He looked back at Wilson and then at Aeron.

“Yeah,” he said, and silently slipped away from the V.I.P. lounge, without alerting his boss—a good sign.

Aeron led him to the door, where Shannon and Lesley were just paying their cover charge. Shannon’s eyes grew wide when she spotted Aeron. “Hey girl!” Aeron called, with as much enthusiasm as she could force. “I want you to meet my new friend, uh…” She looked over her shoulder and gave him a small smile.

“Pearson,” he said, extending his hand to the girls. Aeron might not have heard what he said in V.I.P., but it certainly was not Pearson. “What a pleasure to meet you,” he continued.

“Would you ladies like to join me in the V.I.P. lounge?” His attention was focused mainly on Aeron and Shannon, and Aeron could easily guess why. One ginger he could enjoy by himself, but two—he would be his boss’s best friend. Lesley picked up on the vibe.

“That’s okay,” Lesley said. “You two go ahead! I’ve got some people to meet.” Her eyes scanned the rafters as she walked away, looking for the boys, no doubt.

“Well, c’mon then,” Pearson said, motioning for the two gingers to follow him.

“Pearson says they’re celebrating his buddy’s good fortune in closing a deal!” Aeron said to Shannon.

“Ooh! What kind of deal? Is he a lawyer? Or a big business man?” Shannon asked, batting her lashes at Pearson.

“A bit of this, a bit of that,” he said uncomfortably. “It doesn’t really matter though does it? He’s going all out tonight, please, enjoy yourselves!”

They had reached the V.I.P. lounge, and Wilson’s eyes flashed as he caught sight of the three of them, his gaze following as they took a seat on a sofa at the far end of the lounge.

“A bottle of Goose,” Pearson said to the waitress, who descended on them before they could sit.

“A bottle of Jack, actually,” Aeron cut in, and then smiled apologetically to Pearson. “I’m not a big Vodka drinker.” The girl looked at Pearson for confirmation, who nodded. Shannon sent her a warning look, and Aeron sent a smirk back. If she was pulled out of bed, she was going to have some fun.

“Where are you ladies from?” he asked, sitting back into the cushions.

“Well, originally I’m from…”

“Excuse me,” a male voice said from behind Aeron, cutting Shannon off. Aeron spun around in her seat to see Wilson, staring hungrily at them. “Who are your lovely friends?” he asked Pearson.

Aeron glanced toward Pearson. He suddenly looked as if he had been constipated for a week. “Well, this is…” he began, and then stopped. He had never asked for their names.

Wilson laughed softly. “Names aren’t important anyway,” he said. “They just get in the way and muddle up a good time. Would you two beautiful ladies like to join me? You would mind wouldn’t you?” Wilson challenged Pearson.

Aeron and Shannon waited for Pearson to answer. This was a defining moment in the hierarchy they needed to break—how loyal was Pearson to Wilson? He only hesitated a millisecond though.

“No! Of course not. I was just checking the stock of these lovely ladies for you.” He stood as though his seat were on fire, and offered it to Wilson.

Aeron raised an eyebrow at Shannon, who gave a slight nod in return. There was one other body guard in V.I.P., besides Pearson, who needed to be distracted—this was going to be easier than they thought.

“Oh Pearson!” Aeron said, reaching out, and lightly tugging on his wrist as he passed.

“Perhaps you could find our other friend and bring her back. And you can tell her there’s room for one, maybe two more?” His eyes lit up and he looked to Wilson for approval, before heading out and gathering the rest of their assassin team.

Alicia and Lesley joined their group just as the drinks arrived. Lesley sat next to Aeron, and Alicia sat on the other side of the small coffee table. “A toast, I think,” Aeron said, passing drinks around—in the direction of Lesley. There was a system behind this which took many nights of practice to perfect. The drinks Lesley handed over with her left hand contained a laxative, and ones handed over with her right contained Benadryl—it truly was a pick your poison type of game.

Aeron and Lesley’s drinks contained nothing. Shannon took one laced with Benadryl—it made her hyper—and for Alicia it didn’t matter because she barely took a sip of her drink. The two body guards both received laxative laced drinks, and Wilson received one with Benadryl. This was a bit of Russian roulette—since his reaction could be either drowsy or hyper.

“A toast,” Aeron said again, once everyone had a drink in their hands. “To our handsome host, and his good fortune, and to someone else’s un-doubtable calamity. For you can’t have one, without the other.”

“Here, here!” Wilson agreed, and knocked back his drink. Everyone else followed suit.

“What a lovely toast,” he said, resting a hand on Aeron’s knee. “Thank you.”

Aeron smiled, but didn’t answer. She was waiting for the tell tale sign that the concoctions had done their jobs. It took only moments for Pearson’s face to go pale, and a line of sweat break out across his brow.

“Everything okay?” Aeron asked him.

“I, uh. I uh. I have to go. I’ll be right back.” He stood abruptly, and awkwardly waddled out of the lounge.

“Is he all right?” Alicia asked, looking concerned. “Maybe I should go check on him?”

She stood up, heading for the direction Pearson had taken off in. Wilson said nothing, and Alicia winked at Aeron before sprinting off after him. With Pearson taken care of, Aeron turned her attention to the other guard. He too had suddenly looked stricken, and Aeron could tell he was torn between his post, and running after Pearson.

“Is he okay?” Shannon asked, leaning into Wilson and nodding toward the guard. Aeron noticed her eyes were dilated and knew it was about time they got moving. Shannon rode the Benadryl-high for about an hour and a half before crashing.

“Jax,” Wilson called, almost looking concerned. “Are you alright?”

Jax shook his head, but kept his mouth clenched.

“It looks to me,” Lesley said, “as if someone might have spiked their drinks. You know, with like, eye drops or something. I hear they do that at these places if you’re not nice to the servers.”

Jax couldn’t seem to hold it together, as he abruptly said, “Sorry boss,” and ran from the lounge.

Wilson looked stunned. “What the hell…” he said, looking around at Aeron and Shannon. The Benadryl seemed to have no effect.

“Perhaps you should go check on him?” Shannon suggested to Lesley, who had already started heading toward the men’s room.

“Yeah. Right on that,” she said, and left the lounge too.

“What the hell is going on here!” Wilson demanded, as Lesley ran after Jax.

Aeron’s eyes flew to Shannon, but her high was inhibiting her from deviating too far from the plan.

“What do you mean?” Aeron asked, keeping his attention away from Shannon who was ready to pounce. “Do you really think someone doused their drinks?” Aeron stood up suddenly, knocking her glass over. “Do you think they poisoned our drinks too?” Having planted the idea, Aeron watched the gears turn in Wilson’s head.

“We should leave,” he said, standing up and grabbing Aeron’s arm. “I have a car around back.”

“No!” Aeron said, wrenching her arm out of his grasp. “I think we will be going home.”

She pulled Shannon to her side and headed out of the lounge.

“Wait!” Wilson nearly cried, blocking their path. “I’m sure no one has been poisoned here. I feel fine, you look fine, and the boys probably wanted some alone time with your friends. They probably already headed back to the house to get the party started there. Perhaps we should join them?”

Hook, line, and sinker—Wilson took the bait.

He guided them to a back door where a security guard—Justin—was waiting. Justin opened the door for them and guided them to the back alley where a limo was waiting.

“Straight to the loft. No stops,” Wilson ordered. He didn’t look twice at the driver, but Aeron did. Decius winked at her from beneath the driver’s cap.

“So, where are we going?” Shannon asked, as they slid into the back of the limo.

“Don’t you worry your little self about it,” Wilson said. “Here, have another cocktail.”

He took out an unmarked bottle and poured them each a glass as the car began to move. Aeron raised an eyebrow at him as she accepted the drink from him. “It’s just a bit of champagne.” Champagne my ass, thought Aeron, and while he was returning the bottle to the cooler, Aeron dropped a small tablet in her glass and gave it a swirl. Light purple bubbles appeared at the top, and she nudged Shannon not to drink—their drinks were spiked with one thing or another.

She sneezed loudly, and hoped the limo wasn’t sound-proof. Wilson seemed to have the look, but she didn’t think he had all the money for the goodies. And she was right. The limo took a hard corner, sending Aeron and Shannon—and their drinks—sliding sideways. Both girls dropped the glasses and braced themselves. Aeron was silently thanking Decius for remembering that backup plan from a previous hit. Wilson cursed and screamed about worthless help, and went into detail how he could dismember the driver and his entire family. He didn’t offer any more drinks.

The limo stopped shortly after, and it wasn’t Decius who opened the door this time, but Luke. Aeron felt a blush color her cheeks, but kept a straight face. Her thoughts went to the little boy Chris, and wondered if they would be able to get him out without too much bloodshed. Most likely not. The building was not what Aeron had expected. They pulled into a regular neighborhood, with ten-story buildings, not the penthouse community she had anticipated. Shannon was becoming antsy and if they didn’t get Wilson inside soon, she would crash, putting the entire team at risk.

“Welcome ladies,” Wilson said, exiting the car behind them, “to my humble abode.”

“Well it is very humble,” Shannon said, scanning the architecture and landscape. Aeron was doing the same, and spotted a figure in black standing stiller than death in the alley. She only saw him because she was looking.

The building buzzed with activity and of people living behind each door. “Do you own this whole building?” Aeron asked, slipping back into her gooey-eyed, lovesick persona.

“Pearson told us how rich you are.”

Wilson laughed. “No, just the top floor. I have much bigger toys to spend my money on—yachts and summer homes. I’m only in the city periodically. This is where we all live.”

“Wow,” Aeron said, still looking around and taking in every inch of the building. They rode the elevator up to the top floor, and being so engrossed with her surroundings, Aeron was

surprised to see Justin waiting at the elevator door.

“Good evening, sir,” he said, bowing his head slightly.

Wilson did not respond, brushing past him and not realizing it was the same doorman from the club. Justin stopped Aeron and Shannon from entering the floor. “Excuse me misses, but protocol.” He held up an electronic scanning device, meant to detect any type of transmitters or metal weapons. He ran the wand over both girls, it went off only as it passed over their cell phones.

“Sorry ladies, but I’ll have to take these for now—you can have them back when you leave.”

They each put up a small protest, until Wilson assured them there was no need to worry. Playing the easily swayed girls, they consented and followed him into the apartment, but not before Shannon stumbled into Justin and Aeron saw him lightly press a transmitter just behind her ear.

“Remove your hands from her!” Wilson barked, yanking Shannon out of Justin’s arms.

There was the possessive anger Aeron had been waiting to see. “Let go!” Shannon cried, and Aeron heard the real pain in her voice. Wilson released her, and Aeron saw the bruises already forming on Shannon’s upper arm. Aeron stepped forward as Justin stepped back, trying to melt into the wall.

“Are you okay?” she asked, lightly touching Shannon’s arm. Shannon nodded, brushing her off. Aeron knew those bruises well, and knew how painful they could be. Wilson took no notice of the girls, and had already unlocked the apartment door. Aeron looked at the door and noticed a major problem; the floor did not consist of a long hallway with doors on either side like the other floors. Stepping off the elevator dropped them right into a foyer and the front door. There were no stairs—no escape route. They would have to navigate the apartment and hope to find the other way out.

“Welcome to my home,” Wilson said, splaying his arms out in pride. They entered into a main living area with hallways jetting out in all directions. It would be a maze to navigate, and Aeron didn’t want to imagine why he would need such a complex living area. There were four men lounging in the front room, with girls draped over them. Aeron averted her eyes, and batted her lashes at Wilson.

“Is there somewhere where we can go that is a bit more private?” Shannon asked, lacing her hand threw Aeron’s. We weren’t planning on sharing you with four others.”

Wilson smiled and led them through the first hallway on the left. Aeron tried to strike up conversation so Shannon could mumble directions and concerns into the transmitter. She slid her hand threw his and took the lead, tugging him along the hallway, which turned and led off in other directions along the way. “This is a nice place! I’ve never seen an apartment designed this way.”

“I designed it myself. I always wanted to be an architect.”

“So what did you end up doing?” Aeron asked, as Wilson tugged her down one of the hallways, breaking off her lead.

“Trust me little girl, you don’t want to know.” He pushed her threw a door she hadn’t seen, and tugged Shannon in after him. The room was lavishly decorated, with a large bed draped in silk sheets, and dimmed lighting. Aeron rolled her eyes in exasperation.

“Shall we get started?” Wilson said, and tugged both girls to the bed.

“Oh, yes,” Aeron said heartily, and took no time in pinning his hands above his head.

“This is how you want it then?” Wilson said, struggling against her. He was much stronger than he looked, much like them, and she was caught off guard as he easily flipped their positions. Shannon froze in mid launch toward him as he pointed a gun at her.

“We can do kinky,” Wilson said straddling her, but didn’t get much further as Aeron wrapped her legs around his shoulder, the tip of her stiletto at his throat, preparing to pop the blade out.

“I would drop the gun if I were you,” she said, but had accidently released the pop-blade anyway. The blade sliced his throat. The gun went off as his body convulsed, spraying blood all over her.

She scrambled from underneath him and looked toward Shannon—she was physically unharmed, but looked livid.

“I hadn’t even worn that dress yet, Aeron.”

Aeron let out a soft laugh, and moved next to her. “I’ll buy you two more just like it.”

Knowing Shannon was okay, Aeron moved back toward Wilson, glad he was still alive.

“Where is the boy?” Aeron demanded.

Wilson’s eye bulged as he tried to stop the blood gushing from his throat.

“I can tell you that you have about twenty minutes left to bleed out,” Shannon said, checking the wound. “You can tell us what we need to know, or we will leave you here to suffer. Where is the boy?”

Wilson gestured to the left of the door.

“Go left?” Aeron asked. “Then what.”

He made a few more maneuvers which would lead them to Chris, and then motioned to his keys. Shannon grabbed them and headed for the door. Wilson made a gurgling noise and Aeron looked down at him.

“Save…me…”

Aeron knelt down and whispered, “Save you? You wouldn’t be able to pay me enough to save you.” She snapped his neck and followed Shannon out of the room.

“We should split up,” Shannon said, her eyes wild with anticipation. “You go and get the boy, and I’ll go let the others in. They’re waiting at the elevator.”

“Are you sure?” she asked, taking the keys from Shannon. Aeron was wary about leaving her, but Shannon persisted, and Aeron had to admit—Shannon letting the troops in was better than her wandering alone looking for a boy that may not be where Wilson said. She had known many dying men to lie to her. But Wilson’s directions led her exactly where he said they would. The two armed guards, however, he failed to mention. She looked around for a weapon of some sort, and caught her reflection in a mirror. The beautiful dress was torn, smeared with blood, and her red hair tousled and tangled about her head—Alicia was going to kill her.

With no weapons except her stilettos, Aeron tore her dress a little more, and stumbled around the corner and toward the men. “Help!” she screamed, and ran toward them. “You have to help him! Somebody came into the room. They’ve stabbed him! Please!”

One of the guards ran forward and caught Aeron as she fell. It was disappointing how easy it was to disarm him and use his semi-automatic rifle to fire a short burst through him, also killing the guard still standing by the door. She stepped over both bodies and used her stolen keys to open the door. A young boy cowered in the corner, and flinched as Aeron came near.

“No, it’s okay. I’m here to help.” He backed even further into the corner and Aeron halted in her tracks. “Chris,” she said, and reached a hand out to him. “Your father sent me. I’m here to bring you home.”

The boy looked at her again, a glimmer of hope in his eyes, and slowly—very slowly—made his way toward her.

“I don’t mean to be rude here, but we really must hurry,” Aeron said, her patience and adrenaline getting the best of her. She wanted to be at the elevator, eliminating potential problems.

Chris got near enough for her to grab his arm and drag him toward the door. Aeron stopped to pick up the two rifles, strapping one over her head, and the holding the other in her free hand ready to shoot. She navigated her way back to Wilson’s room, and had to pause—which way had they come from?

“Aeron!” She followed the voice, let out a sigh of relief as they ran into Luke.

“Hey, Lulu. Wanna take this for me?” Aeron passed off Chris and smirked at Luke’s resentment. “Which way is out?” she asked, as they made their way toward the front. “Is there an alternative or just the front entrance?”

“As far as we can tell, the only other exit is off the kitchen, leading up to the roof. Follow the smell of burning food, courtesy of Lesley, and you’ll be good.” He was already heading down a different hallway before Aeron could say thank you. The blood-bath in the front room was not what she had expected. They were generally quite clean about their kills, mostly because it meant less personal clean up before they went to The Diner. But the room was quiet, and the four men she had seen on the way in were dead, as were the girls who were with them.

Aeron tossed the two rifles toward Decius. “Collateral damage?” she asked, accepting the dagger he tossed her way.

“Yes, and no. They tried to use them as hostages, but one of the girls sneezed, startling her captor and causing them each to shoot their own hostage.”

Aeron nodded. They didn’t seem like the brightest goons. “Is the apartment clear?”

“No idea. There are too many rooms and hallways to work them all out,” Justin said.

“Where’s Shannon?” Aeron asked suddenly. A steel fist clenched her stomach. “Didn’t she let you in?”

“No. Justin did,” Decius said, looking around as if Shannon would magically appear. Aeron was staring at Justin leaning against a hallway entrance, and suddenly cocked back the dagger and threw it. Justin stood stock still as the blade grazed his ear and landed with a solid flump, followed by a heavy thump.

Justin stepped sideways and looked at the fallen body. “Thanks,” he said, kicking the gun out of the convulsing hand and picking it up.

“Where’s Shannon?” Aeron asked again.

“Doesn’t she have the boy?” Decius asked. “She never made it to the front room.”

Her high must have ended sooner than expected, Aeron thought, and glanced at her watch. No, wait. It had been closer to two hours—when did that happen? “She’s crashed.” Aeron said, looking back up at the boys. “We need to find her. Where’s Alicia?”

“In the car,” Justin said. “Where’s Luke?”

“He has the boy,” Aeron said, already heading back down the hallway from which she came. “Justin, you go to the roof and tell them we’re coming. If we’re not there in five, go without us.”

Justin nodded, heading toward the black smoke billowing out of—where Aeron assumed was—the kitchen. Decius followed Aeron’s lead back down the hallway.

“Where should we start?”

“The path from here, to the room we were in, isn’t that far. And even on her high, she wouldn’t have just gotten lost. Start checking every room.” Aeron and Decius began opening, and breaking down doors. There was no sign of Shannon. “This doesn’t make sense!” Aeron yelled, as she banged open yet another door.

“I found her!” Decius called, and Aeron found herself flying down hallways and through doors until she came upon one of the only sights which would make her heart stop. Decius was crouched over a figure—covered in blood, and not moving.