Chapter 27
Maya
I don’t look back. No matter how much I want to confirm Soren hasn’t been hurt already, I keep my focus on getting to Bella.
My legs shake as I race up the stairs, and I trip up a step, falling hard on my knees.
I ignore the pain, pulling myself onto my weak legs and glancing back to make sure no one is after me.
When I hit the hallway, I speed up as much as my fuzzy socks will allow on marble floors.
How have I learned nothing about more reliable footwear?
Bella’s door is shut, and my hands shake around the doorknob, refusing to work right. The door finally gives, and I rush into the room and straight to the bed where the darling angel is fast asleep.
“Bella.” I grab her hand and begin pulling her from the bed, but the girl is a deep sleeper and doesn’t stir. “Bella, get up. We need to go.”
She grumbles but refuses to move. She’s deadweight, and I can’t carry her like this.
“A bad man is here, and we need to get out of here.” I pat her cheeks softly. “Come on, sweetie.”
She comes to life, cracking her eyes open and allowing me to pull her from the bed onto her noodle legs. I catch her before she face-plants on the floor.
“What’s going on?”
“I’ll explain when we are downstairs.”
“Okay,” she says with a yawn. Bless this sleepy, obedient child.
I crack open the door and peek out into the hall. The coast is clear.
I pull her with me, keeping my body in front of hers. We make it to the staircase, but I pause, holding her there until I’m sure it’s safe below. We’ll have to be quick.
“I think we’re good.”
No sooner are the words out of my mouth than a man comes running in from the balcony. Soren.
He spots us at the top. “Hide!” He yells. “Hide like Bella.” He takes off in the opposite direction, once again leading the man away from us—the Giant who is fuming and stomping through the doors now.
“He’s huge,” Bella whispers, finally sensing the urgency as she pulls me back. “I know the perfect place.”
With renewed energy, she speeds up, leading me back to her room.
“We’re not safe here. Maybe the bathroom.” I lock the door behind us and head for the attached bathroom, but she shakes her head.
“Through here.” She crouches beneath her desk and pushes at the wall. It collapses in, exposing a small passageway.
“What the—?”
“Move it, lady!” she shouts. I drop to my knees and follow her inside. It’s cramped, and my back brushes the ceiling of the small crawl space, but I manage to reach behind me and push the door closed.
It’s nearly ten feet of crawling before the space opens into a small room.
There’s a TV mounted on one wall and two computer monitors, complete with a video gaming setup.
There is a beanbag chair positioned next to shelf of books far beyond her maturity level.
The room is painted black, but there are neon lights decorating every corner.
“You have a secret room?” I’m equal parts annoyed and in awe. How has she never let this secret slip? “Why didn’t you tell me?”
She lifts a shoulder. “You didn’t ask.”
I blink. “Are there any other hidden rooms in the house I don’t know about?”
“So many,” she chuckles.
I shake my head. This girl never ceases to surprise me.
And then she wakes up the computer, and on its resting display is… a live video of every room in the house.
“You have access to the security feed?”
“Duh. How else am I supposed to know what’s going on?”
Are the Hartwells sure this girl is only nine? She’s more formidable than most adults. What has she seen on these monitors? Specifically in the last forty-eight hours.
“It’s just the live feed, right? It doesn’t, like, record?”
“Of course it records. I have to know all the places you look when you try to find me, so I know how to hide better the next time.”
I’d like to hope that is the only reason she would watch the recordings, but I’m not dumb.
“H-how did your parents allow this?”
“They didn’t.” She’s focused on the computer and flicks around on the screen like she’s controlling the weather. I wouldn’t put it past her. “They think I’m stupid, but I watched them punch in the codes enough times. YouTube taught me the rest.”
This girl will either rule the world or burn it to the ground.
“Can you find Sor—I mean Derek? And that guy?”
She clicks around on the screen, moving between rooms. “I don’t see Derek. But Godzilla is in the gym.”
“Keep an eye on him,” I tell Bella and step away, pulling Soren’s cell out of my pocket.
What was the passcode? 7520? No.
7502. Got it.
I quickly maneuver to the contacts, though I’m tempted to do a deep dive into his personal life. His search history, pictures, recent purchases… That sounds super stalkerish. Which I’m not. I’m simply curious. And… I will still be curious later.
I find the name I need and click on the call button.
It rings twice before someone picks up.
“Hello?” a heavy British accent answers. For a minute, I forgot the person I was calling was a famous thief turned good guy, who is rich and really attractive.
“H-hi.” This is a terrible time to be star-struck.
“You’re not Soren.”
That snaps me back to the moment. “No. He’s in trouble. We need your help. There’s another thief here, and we’re trapped.”
“Blast,” he mutters, and I hear some commotion in the background. “I was heading that way already, but I’ll have to make some slight adjustments. Keep this phone handy; I’ll call back.” The phone beeps, signaling the end of the call.
I pace the small room.
It’s all going to be fine. We are just going to sit here and wait for this Liam guy to rescue us. No biggie.
“The bad guy has a sword!” Bella shouts.
Big deal! Big freaking deal!
I rush to the computer monitors. She’s got the feed for the library enlarged on the screen, and there is the Giant, beating on a bookshelf with an antique sword.
Presumably, the bookshelf Soren is hiding behind.
That’s my favorite secret room, but it’s just a room, not a door to a passageway.
It's a dead end. Soren must have it jammed shut, but that won’t stop the man from breaking down the wall.
Thankfully, there are no first editions on that shelf.
“I need to go down there,” I say, mostly to myself.
“Are you crazy?” Bella snaps. “That man is smashing my house to pieces. He’ll smash you, too.”
“I’ll lead him away so Derek can get out. Once I’ve done that, I’ll lose him and come right back.” I can’t believe I’m even considering this. This fact alone proves Soren has taken up more room in my heart than he should have after all this time.
“Okay.” Bella sighs, like she’s the only responsible and sane one in the room, and well, she might be. “Run through the conservatory, and I’ll distract him.”
“No.” I shake my head so hard it rattles my brain like the concussion did. “You are not to leave this room.”
She holds up a hand, and again I feel like a child. “I have a trap set up in there you haven’t found yet. I can blow it from here. Trust me. It will slow him down.”
Trust a child? At this point, there are no other options. My eyes drift to the security feed and Soren’s helpless position. I cringe as half the bookcase comes down with the Giant’s next hit. He’s going to get through the wall soon.
“Okay.”
I take Bella’s hand from the mouse, forcing her to look at me. “Promise me you won’t leave this room. Not until I get you.”
“If I had a choice, I’d never leave this room.” She says it lightly, settling into her seat.
“Bella, I’m serious. Promise me.”
She purses her lips.
“But… what if he catches you?” The first sign of actual worry crosses her face. An even bigger worry hits my chest. Is leaving her a bad idea?
No. She’s safe and hidden. As long as she stays here, he’ll never find her. I’ll give him the painting before allowing him to get anywhere near her.
Soren is in danger, and I have no idea when Liam will be here, but with the way the Giant is destroying the bookshelf, it may not hold for another five minutes.
“Don’t worry about me. You just stay here. I’ll be back soon.”
“You better be.” She looks away from me, and I take that as my cue to go before I catch her showing more emotion than she’s comfortable with.
I crawl through the small tunnel, then listen at the tiny door before pushing it open.
I pull myself out and shut the door to protect Bella should the man find his way up here.
For extra security, I scoot the desk over so it’s halfway covering it, the whole time telling myself it’s okay to lock a child in a tiny room for a few minutes and that I absolutely won’t lose my job over it. Or get arrested.
Not for the first time, I wonder just how much trouble I’m going to be in when the Hartwells discover what’s really been going on here. This job is all I have and soon it will be gone. But none of that matters right now.
Once outside Bella’s room, I relock the door, then quickly head down the hall. The stairs are wide open, making me feel like a helpless animal on display, but the smashing noises are still coming from the direction of the library.
What was I thinking? How am I supposed to distract him from far enough away so I can outrun him?
Maybe I can throw something at him? I couldn’t even hit Soren with a snowball when he was fifteen feet away. Maybe I can whistle.
I trip on the bottom step, falling over something. Bella’s megaphone.
Perfect.
I tiptoe as close to the library as I dare, stopping in the hall outside the door.
I raise the horn to my lips and turn the volume up, readying my feet to run the second I’ve distracted him.
“This is the police. Drop the sword.”
The pounding stops, followed by a thud, which I pray is the sword falling to the ground. That’s good enough for me.
I run while screaming into the megaphone. “Come out with your hands up!”
“Stupid girl!” The words pierce through the penthouse. I risk a glance back. He’s twenty feet behind me and mad as a hornet. I didn’t fool him for long, but hopefully long enough for Soren to get free.
This is far more terrifying than I anticipated. Why do I keep thinking I'm a match for dangerous thieves?
I sprint down the hall, but he gets closer with each step. At the base of the stairs, I grab the swing, throwing the circular disk behind me. It makes a thud as it bounces off something—hopefully, his head.
His hand brushes my hair, and I scream, circling the small carousel if only to put something, anything, between us.
I leap over the mess of flour and dry noodles in the kitchen.
But he fails to see it in time and slips.
I push my legs harder, heading for the conservatory.
I don’t know what Bella has planned, but I hope she doesn’t accidentally release it on me instead of him.
“Give me the painting or I shoot,” the man yells, ambling after me. I’ve got a lead, but not much. If he’d had a gun, he would have fired in the library. I call his bluff and slide on my fuzzy socks through the conservatory.
I’m at the other end when something explodes and splatters. I glance back to see goopy green slime covering him from head to toe. He slips, falling into the slop.
To think I used to hate Bella’s pranks.
I don’t wait around for him and double back through the living room.
But his voice once again rings through the cavernous penthouse. He’s not giving up, and I can’t lead him to Bella. Is she watching? I hope she’s enjoying this show, because it may end in disaster.
I switch directions and head toward the theater. I pass the bathroom, but suddenly, I’m flying backward, into a chest and pulled into a dark space.
I try to scream, but a hand comes over my mouth.
“It’s me,” Soren whispers, slowly releasing my mouth.
We’re in the Hobbit room. Safe.
“Soren?” I spin around in his arms. “You made it out.”
“Thanks to you. I had to break the rest of the door to get out.” The room is too dark. I can’t see his face, but I can feel his gratitude as his voice softens. “You were supposed to stay with Bella and keep her safe.”
“She is safe,” I say, if only to reassure myself. I grip Soren’s shirt in my trembling hands, and he holds me around the waist, pressing me into him as if he needs me closer than he can physically get me. I hold him just as tight. “I’m scared.”
“I know,” he whispers, but he falls silent as the stomping seems to stop right outside our door. Have we been found? Is this the end?
I wait… for the door to come crashing down, for Soren and me to get ripped apart for the last time.
“I should have come for you,” he whispers so softly the words barely reach my ears.
I hardly dare to breathe, for fear he’ll halt his confession or that we will be found.
“I should have told you everything. I thought I’d forget about you, but I never did. I thought I’d move on, but I never could.”
I bite the inside of my cheek, feeling a small amount of satisfaction about that.
“I thought I stopped loving you, but it was simply lying dormant, and finding you again was the catalyst to split my heart in two.”
My eyes sting, and I open my mouth to respond, but words fail me.
“I know you have no reason to believe me, but someday I’ll earn your trust again,” he whispers.
Someday. As in more, as in a possibility of us.
I tilt my head, unable to see him in the dark, but I can feel him. Feel his head bend, feel the warmth of his breath on my skin as he moves nearer.
His lips touch mine gently, like a question. I answer, pressing my lips firmly to his.
This is what I’ve wanted since the moment he left me when I was eighteen.
My body thrums to life. I’ve been dead and buried for the last eight years, and his kiss brings me back to life.
I feel like I’ve waited a thousand years for this, and yet it also seems that no time has passed since I kissed him last.
His hands roam up my back, tangling in my hair as he pulls me ever closer, ready to devour me.
I’m ready to let him.
“I love you, Maya.” He doesn’t wait for a response; he doesn’t demand one as he deepens the kiss.
He nips at my bottom lip, and my heart ramps up, flooding my body with warmth, with the overwhelming feeling of love. A well that once ran dry fills back up.
I wrap my arms around his neck, and he lifts me, holding me to his height as he feathers kisses over my jaw, then to my lips. His beard scratches my skin, but everywhere he scorches, he soothes.
He kisses me soft and slow, then fast and desperate, unraveling me and putting me back together. He’s recklessly passionate yet achingly gentle with me, giving me all the time I need to come back to him.
Piece by piece, kiss by tender kiss, he takes all the pain away. How could I not forgive him?
There’s danger outside, but in here we are safe, and I lose myself in his touch. In him. He’s all I have ever wanted. And still, he’s all I want.