Chapter 18 The Signal
THE SIGNAL
* * *
I suddenly couldn’t breathe. With Darren’s hot cum slowly leaking down my leg and my knuckles smarting from decking him in the mouth, I watched him disappear down the hall. This was it. This was the signal. They had successfully drawn him out and away from the house, just like they planned.
Darren had said our old stomping grounds. Did he mean the warehouse where we were all sold? Was that where Jason had drawn him to?
While it was an interesting choice, I didn’t have the time to ponder it. I needed to get prepared. Now.
Turning on my heels, I took off running toward the stairs. I needed to change my clothes into something a little more battle-worthy.
“Jaden! Where are you racing off to?” Sloane questioned from down the hall as she called after me.
Ignoring her, I hurried into the bedroom and rushed into the walk-in closet, quickly swapping my clothes for the closest protective workout gear I could get away with without drawing suspicion.
“Jaden, what are you doing?” Sloane asked from behind me.
“Nothing, I just really feel like working out right now,” I answered, trying to keep the anxiety out of my voice.
“But you already did this morning.”
“Yeah, well, I just became inspired to try out some new moves.”
After removing my dress, I wiped away Darren’s drying cum from my legs and then tossed the garment away.
I slipped into a high-impact sports bra and pulled on some long black leggings I was technically supposed to request special permission to wear.
After securing my hair in a high ponytail, I grabbed a tank top and threw it on as I turned to look down at my shoes.
I had a pair of training combat boots that would be much more useful in an attack than my damn running shoes. I contemplated what to do for only a few seconds before reaching down and grabbing the boots.
“Combat boots? For training?” Sloane cocked a brow at me. “Since when?”
“Since now. Gotta switch it up every now and then, ya know?” It was the only excuse I could think of on the fly as I finished lacing them up. I then stood and reached into the drawer of my vanity, where I kept the brass knuckles Sloane had given me for my birthday.
“What do you need those for?” she asked me as she watched me slip them into my pocket.
“I thought I’d finally try them out on my bags.”
She cocked a brow at me. “You seem like you’re in an awful hurry to do so,” she commented suspiciously, her brows furrowing as she watched me.
“Yeah, well,” I replied as I moved for the door, “there’s no time like the present.”
I exited the closet and stood in the middle of the bedroom, pausing at my next move.
What the fuck was I supposed to do now? I couldn’t very well start collecting all the guns and ammunition I knew were hidden all over this room and the rest of the house.
Not without drawing massive suspicion. I might actually have to pretend to work out until the shit finally hit the fan.
Fuck.
“What’s wrong now?” Sloane asked behind me.
My eyes shot back to her, completely forgetting she was standing there as I contemplated literal war on Darren’s doorstep.
“I was just thinking about something Darren had said earlier,” I answered and then stepped out onto the balcony to begin stretching while watching for any sign of movement over the grounds and water.
“You’re acting very strange, Jaden. Is everything alright?” Sloane asked, the suspicion in her Russian accent barely restrained.
I scoffed with a nervous laugh as I slid down into the splits, stretching my hips and legs. “Nothing is ever alright, Sloane. You should know that by now.”
She remained silent as I continued to warm my body up for the firefight I knew was headed our way. I just hoped I didn’t appear too paranoid as my eyes scanned the horizon. After counting for nearly six minutes, my anxiety could take no more.
And then I suddenly remembered something very important. “Where are Katherine and Ella?” I asked.
Sloane’s brows furrowed before she answered me. “I believe they’re both in their suite. Why?”
I sighed as I rubbed the ache beginning to form at my temples. How the fuck was I going to handle this? I needed to get them out of here somehow.
“I need to see them.” I turned for the bedroom door before quickly moving down the hall, Sloane groaning aloud as she easily caught up with me.
I continued walking toward the main stairway, their suite just on the other side, and trying my damnedest to covertly glance out the windows without turning my head. But just as we reached the end of the hallway, a loud commotion from the front of the house caught my attention.
I stopped in my tracks to listen to what sounded like some sort of crash, followed by screeching tires. Sloane’s face suddenly became concentrated as she listened in to her earpiece, prompting me to race for the nearest window that would offer a view from the front of the house.
The screeching tires were quickly followed by rapid gunfire echoing in the air as a black van sped down the front drive to stop in front of the fountain. Sloane was at my back in an instant just as the guards opened fire at the van.
“What the hell was that?” Sloane growled aloud as her eyes observed the van, pulling me back. “Jaden, get away from the window!”
“What the fuck is going on!” Turning my head, I saw Scott hurrying down the hall to join us next to the window as Sloane yanked me behind her. When he looked down at the van that was now surrounded by Darren’s guards, guns aimed high, he groaned. “What the fuck is that?”
Suddenly, all the lights in the house went out. Sloane and Scott paused, their eyes connecting as the gunshots began to cease. Peering behind Sloane’s shoulder, I could see the guards pulling open the doors of the van but finding no one inside. Had someone driven the van remotely somehow?
“Communications are down,” Sloane confirmed as she pulled out her earpiece to examine it.
Scott’s eyes widened as he looked out the window. “They just launched a fucking EMP!” he shouted. “Fuck!”
I felt my jaw drop at the revelation.
Holy. Fucking. Shit.
An EMP with enough voltage could easily render every single security measure on the property completely useless.
All of their communications equipment—security systems, radars, cameras, computers, anything that required electricity—was not only completely inoperable, it was all effectively destroyed.
The landmines buried under the lawn, the automatic rocket launchers, all the drones, the electric cages and vaults containing all of the weapons and ammunition, and even some of the vehicles would be entirely out of commission.
The only thing they could use to defend the property were the literal guns in their hands.
And, in all likelihood, my collar was also probably toast.
I felt my breath catch in my throat.
Fucking brilliant.
Scott pulled out his phone, but after a few frustrated seconds, he confirmed what I already knew. Everyone’s cell phones were fried—which meant no one would be able to contact Darren that an attack was on its way.
Don’t smile. Don’t smile. Don’t smile.
“We need to mobilize everyone on the property. An attack is imminent, and our backup generators are only going to get us so far,” Scott said to Sloane.
“Agreed. But I need to secure Jaden first. Her safety is obviously priority number one,” Sloane replied.
Scott turned his eyes down to mine, his brows furrowing with fury. “What the fuck are you smiling about?” he asked, his tone sharp with fury.
I quickly schooled my face. Fuck!
“I’m not smiling,” I argued.
“Yes, the fuck you were,” he continued, stepping closer to me with an intense look in his eye. “In fact, you look absolutely elated.” His eyes traveled down my body, making me slightly anxious before they stopped at my feet. “You’re even dressed for the fucking occasion.”
I scoffed, faking my outrage. “What the hell are you accusing me of, Scott? Now is not the fucking time to put me on trial when you should be preparing for an attack that you just said is likely imminent.”
But he didn’t seem to care. He continued to stare down at me, his eyes racing back and forth like he was in deep contemplation.
“We don’t have time for this,” Sloane interrupted as she began to pull me to her side. “I have to get her secured. Now.”
But the second she pulled us away, Scott’s fist suddenly flew through the air, slamming hard into the side of Sloane’s head and causing her to crash to the floor.
Did he just knock her out?
“What the fuck, Scott!” I shouted as I backed away from the raging ferocity radiating from him. He reached down to pull Sloane’s gun from her holster and held it tightly at his side.
“I knew something was off with you. I fucking knew it ever since Chicago,” he growled as he started to charge my way.
“I tried to ignore the signs and bury my suspicions because I actually liked you, Jaden, and I didn’t want to believe it.
But I can see now you’ve managed to fool me just like you did Darren. ”
I quickly shook my head in my defense. “Scott, come on. Don’t do this. Not now.”
“Except Daniel,” he continued, maintaining his slow pursuit of me. “He tried to tell me after Camaro bit him, but he was drunk, and I didn’t listen. He saw right through your lies, didn’t he? And now he’s fucking dead because of it.”
Panic was starting to seize my lungs as I continued to back away from Scott’s threatening encroachment.
Realizing I still hadn’t responded, I scoffed in outrage. “Daniel is dead because he fucking raped me, Scott. What the hell are you talking about?”