Chapter 45

Chapter FORTY-FIVE

But at least that moist chill of the basement clung to Fiona instead of the pipe she and her team were still clanging away on with the rust. Each metallic clang sounded like a desperate cry for help, bouncing through the small windowless room into otherwise silent space. The minutes dragged into hours, each hour longer than the last, but Fiona knew they couldn't stop. They had to keep going—it was their only chance.

Victor was the first to reveal the fatigue. His hits on the pipe began to slow; the sound became weaker. Fiona shot him a glance of encouragement, but she could see the doubt creeping into his eyes. They all knew the truth: the noise might not be enough.

It was just at the moment when Fiona's arms were aching from the unending battering that the sound of footsteps, very faint, reached her ears. The others heard it as well. They stopped, straining their ears to see if this might be some indication that their work had not been for nothing after all. The noise continued, growing louder each time, then closer, and closer until it stopped right outside the door.

"Keep quiet," Julian whispered, eyes narrowed in concentration.

Slowly, the door creaked open, and a guard stepped inside. His flashlight sliced through the darkness. "What the hell are you doing here?" he barked, his voice gruff. "Shut up, or I'll make sure you do."

Now, Fiona's brain was moving twice as fast. They could not throw away this opportunity. They had to think fast and act fast. She locked eyes with Julian, who barely perceptibly nodded.

"We were just trying to get your attention," Fiona said, her voice quiet but urgent. She took a step forward, trying to catch the guard's eye. "Look, you really don't need to do this. Whatever Devereaux is paying you, we can give you more."

He sneered, the flashlight flicking up in his hand. "You think you can buy me off? I'm not that stupid."

Fiona sensed Julian slipping soundlessly to the side, edging closer to the guard. The room was taut with the strain of Fiona speaking now, with the hope the guard would continue to fix his attention on her exclusively.

"It isn't about being stupid," Fiona repeated tonelessly. "It's about survival. You know as well as I do Devereaux won't keep you around forever. Once you're no longer useful, you're disposable.

The guard blinked, loosening his grasp on the flashlight for a second. That was all Julian needed. Swiftly and fluidly, Julian advanced on the guard, smacking the flashlight from his hand and executing a clean shot to the temple. The guard crumpled to the floor.

Victor was prompt, and together, they pulled the sentry to the corner of the room, stripped him of his armament, and then bound his hands and feet with a length of rope in the corner.

"Nice work," Emma murmured through the scarf, her voice muffled, as she searched the guard's pockets. She pulled out a key card and held it up for the others to see. "This might be our ticket out of here."

Julian took the key card and examined it. "This will open the front doors, but we'll need to tread carefully. The estate will be on high alert."

"We can't afford to lose a single minute," Fiona said, all determination now etched on her face. "Devereaux knows we're a threat, and he'll stop at nothing to make sure we don't leave this place alive."

They quickly came up with the plan: be fast, be quiet, and don't meet more guardians on the way out. Julian clenched the keycard tight in his hand as he treaded on. Fiona, Emma, Victor was at his heels.

They slipped out of the room and into the dimly lit hallway. In the stillness of the estate, every sound seemed amplified: their footsteps, the rustle of their clothes, the faint hum of the security system. Fiona's heart was pounding in her chest, a reminder at each beat of exactly what was at stake.

Julian moved ahead, leading them through a number of narrow corridors, using the guard's keycard to bypass several security-locked doors. The estate was a maze of identical hallways, each one more disorienting than the last. But Julian moved with a single-mindedness that spoke volumes; his military training showed in the precision of his movements.

The main exit was close now, and they could hear voices—guards standing just beyond the door. Fiona felt a rush of anxiety. They were so close, yet so far from freedom. She could feel others tensing beside her, preparing themselves for what might be a final confrontation.

Julian raised his hand up, stopping them. He turned his head toward the door, listening intently to what the guards were saying on the other side of the door. After a moment, he turned back to the group. His expression was grim.

"There are at least three guards on the other side," he whispered. "We can't take them all out without alerting the rest of the estate.

"We need a distraction," Emma finished quickly as her mind raced, "something that'll draw them away from the door long enough for us to slip out."

Fiona's gaze swept down the hall and back up to come to rest on a fire alarm mounted on one wall. It was a risk, true, but it might be the only thing to save their lives. She jerked her thumb toward it, and Julian nodded in comprehension.

"Once I pull it, we need to move fast," Julian said. "Get ready."

Fiona drew a deep breath and began to mentally prepare herself. Her grip on the pistol snatched from the guard tightened even further, as she kept her finger poised just above the trigger. This was the second that was going to make or break whether they got out alive.

Julian raised an arm and yanked the red fire alarm handle that was mounted on the wall just to the left of the door frame. The second he did, a high-pitched peal split the air, ringing with a nerve-shattering keening, and water sprang out of devices in the ceiling. The guards' startled comments from the other side of the door blended into a clamor of questions about what was happening.

"Go!" Julian hissed.

They moved as one, pushing through the door and into the chaos beyond. The guards were caught out for a split second, allowing Fiona and her team to gain those critical seconds that let them slip past and make for the exit.

The estate was now in chaos; guards hurried to gain control of the false emergency, sprinklers poured onto everything, turning the marble floors into slippery, hazardous surfaces. In the distance, the running down hallway, there were the exit doors that Fiona's heart saw.

As they reached the last set of doors, yelling behind them, Fiona turned to see several guards giving chase, weapons drawn. She didn't hesitate, raising her pistol, firing back in their direction. The guards ducked for cover, giving Fiona and the others the few seconds they needed to burst through the doors and out into the cold night air.

They didn't stop, their feet pounding on the gravel as they ran toward the vehicle hidden earlier. Fiona could feel her lungs burn from the effort, but she wouldn't let up; she could hear the guards behind them, still in pursuit, and the way she saw things, they wouldn't stop until they had arrested or killed them.

Victor reached the SUV first and pulled the door open, jumping into the driver's seat. The other bodies moved quickly to pile inside. Fiona hardly had her door closed before Victor was flooring the accelerator and they were skidding out onto the road.

The bullets continued to rain into the metal as the men inside the car drove off. Fiona ducked her head, her heart pounding in her chest. They were out, but not yet safe.

"Everyone okay?" Victor shouted, his voice barely heard over the roar of the engine.

"Yeah," Julian said, eyes flicking up to the rearview mirror, scanning for pursuit. "But they're going to be on us any second. We need to lose them."

Fiona dared a momentary glance back herself. The estate was flying into the distance, but she could see the headlights of several vehicles already bearing down on them from behind. They needed to lose them, and quickly, if they wanted to get away from them.

"Turn right," Emma said, and her voice was incredibly even for the huge amount of tension she must have felt. "Through the forest. There's a narrow road. It's incredibly risky, but it's probably our best shot."

Victor nodded, and the SUV swerved off the main track and onto the narrow dirt track. The tires skidded on the loose gravel, Fiona feeling the vehicle lurch as they tore through the dense of trees. Branches scratched down the side of the SUV, but Victor kept his foot down, determined to put as much distance between them and their pursuers as he could.

The forest road twisted and throbbed, Fiona holding on through sharp bends the best she could. Through the thinning of the trees, she caught flickering headlights; the dense foliage had begun to slow them down. Fiona dared hope they might escape.

After seeming to always move farther away from a breakout, finally they burst out of the forest and onto some deserted highway. Without time to waste, Victor floored it down the open road, increasing space between them and the estate.

There was silence inside for a couple of minutes as tension slowly eased and the headlights of their chasers faded. Fiona let herself breathe, still feeling a shot of adrenaline in her blood.

Finally, he spoke with relief in his voice. "We made it. We made it."

Fiona nodded, feeling triumphant in spite of it all. They had escaped Devereaux at last, but her fight was not over. They still had a long way to go, and their enemies wouldn't give up easily.

But for now, they were alive, and that was enough.