Chapter 22
Chapter Twenty-Two
“Don’t even think about it. Igor here”—Ubrigg nodded at the large guard—“will kill you before you can get a shot off.”
Dani shifted her gaze to the hulking mountain of a man in the doorway next to Ubrigg. He wore a black knitted cap over his forehead and black security garb that matched Romy’s.
A tremor consumed her body, rattling the metal in her hold. She locked her jaw and fought the avalanche of rage that threatened to overtake her common sense. She wanted to blow them both away. Even without Brock, she had a lot to live for. Serena and her sweet baby niece or nephew needed her.
She’d escaped once already—Ubrigg wouldn’t be dumb enough to allow that to happen again. Whatever she did, she couldn’t let them detain her. She had to walk out of this building. Now.
“C’mon, Ms. Metcalf. You’re a smart woman. Hand over the gun.”
She let the weapon hang across her chest and moved her hand away from the trigger. Raising one hand in the air, she kept her other on the base of the barrel.
“You’re right. I am smart. Which is why I’m not going to hand over the gun,” she said, cocking her eyebrow.
Ubrigg rested one loafer on the bottom step. He removed his glasses, lifted his lab coat and cleaned the lenses, then returned them to his face. Every ounce of him exuded confidence.
“I can’t let you leave. Not until I have my formula.”
A tiny balloon of hope swelled in her abdomen. Did that mean he hadn’t seen Brock? “I don’t have it. You know that.”
“Yeah, and your boyfriend didn’t show at our meeting point. Why? Perhaps he decided to sacrifice you and give the formula to another party to help destroy a portion of humanity.”
She shook her head. “He wouldn’t do that. There must be a mistake.”
“I’ve tried to call him to no avail.”
“Then someone else has him and he’s in danger.” Her voice rose on the last words. She swallowed to still the rising anxiety in her chest. If she got skittish, they might just kill her for the hell of it.
Ubrigg pursed his lips, and he rocked his knee from side to side as he studied her. “If that’s the case, you’re of no use to me.”
She straightened. “Good. I’ll see myself out.”
The beefy guard laughed, and the sound reverberated off the cement stairwell.
He stepped forward and shot out his hand.
His rough palm snagged her wrist, and he towed her down the last few steps to the ground floor.
“Unfortunately we can’t do that, princess.
Romy would like to have a few . . .” He swirled his fingers in the air.
“Words with you.” She coiled away from his cigarette-tainted breath as the implication of his words fell over her like a stack of sheet metal.
Romy. Shit.
Disgust collided with indignation. Whether he’d meant it as a joke or a threat, the gleam in his coal-like eyes rang warning bells in her head.
She should have killed Romy when she had the chance.
Being so close to Igor, with the gun around her chest aimed at his abdomen, she might be able to kill him and run before he could retaliate. She moved her finger on the trigger.
Ubrigg coughed sharply, and she looked up at him. His beady green eyes locked on her fingers and then her face. She might be able to kill the guard, but then she’d also have to kill Ubrigg before he could take the gun from her.
Too dangerous.
Ubrigg reached forward, snagged the gun, and dragged the strap over her head. He hung it at his side. “Igor, let’s take her—”
The lights went out, bathing them in darkness. Igor’s fingers strangled her bicep, and he pressed her back to his chest. “What’s going on?” he asked, his tone menacing.
Dani scanned the stairwell, her eyes struggling to adjust to the blackout. She blinked and tuned her ears to the dead silence. Hope pitter-pattered against her breastbone. Brock. It had to be him. Tears stung the backs of her eyes. If he was here, he was alive.
Please, God, don’t let this be some cruel trick, just a blown fuse.
She took slow, shallow breaths so as not to alert Ubrigg and Igor to her angst.
“Fuse box is on the main level,” Ubrigg said. “One moment.” He rustled around, and a few seconds later his cell phone’s flashlight lit the stairwell. “This way.” He motioned Igor to go back through the door they’d entered.
Igor twisted her arm back painfully, and she pressed her tongue to the roof of her mouth. No way in hell she’d give him the satisfaction of knowing he’d hurt her. He shoved her through the shadows. She focused on every shape, praying one of them would move and Brock would step out.
Forcing her breath down her throat, she fought the urge to run. What to do? Brock was here—he had to be. Was she supposed to try to escape? Give him a sign about where she was? She sure as hell didn’t want to get caught in the crossfire if he encountered Ubrigg while searching for her.
She had to alert Brock to her whereabouts. She snapped her arm forward, jerking Igor. “You don’t have to hold on to me so tight. I’m not going anywhere.” She spoke more loudly than necessary.
“Shh!” He pinched her arm tighter in his hold. “Keep walking. How far to the fuse box, boss?”
“Not far.”
They inched down the corridor as if they were moving through thick black sludge. Ubrigg’s beam of light illuminated only a triangle of hallway in front of him. With every step Dani carefully toed the tile in front of her.
A soft scuffle slithered across the floor behind her. Her senses prickled and she turned her head toward the sound.
“I said, keep moving.” Igor’s spit hit her ear, and she lifted her shoulder to wipe the droplets from her skin. She was hearing things.
“Here we are,” Ubrigg called out cheerfully. The beam from his cell phone illuminated the electrical room’s door.
Dani’s stomach did somersaults and tears swelled behind her lids. The wall of Igor’s chest closed in behind her, preventing her from escaping. Brock hadn’t come. She dipped her chin and a shiver raked over her exposed skin.
She swallowed and curled her hand into a fist at her side. She wouldn’t wipe the tears from her face and give either of the two bozos the satisfaction of seeing her defeat.
“What the hell?” Ubrigg jammed his shoulder against the metal door, and it bounced on the hinges.
“Is it locked?”
“There’s no lock on this door.” Ubrigg tried the handle again.
Another slither. Dani straightened her spine and glanced out of the corner of her eye. Soft, shallow puffs of air broke through her lips.
Someone’s here.
Her heart sang with relief momentarily, until fear brought it to a screeching halt. If it wasn’t Brock, it could be someone more dangerous—someone like Giles Artis.
“Move aside, doc. I’ll get the door.”
The air in the hall shifted, dragging the hairs on her flesh to a point. Something rushed toward her and she ducked.
“Argh!” Igor’s gurgled scream ripped through the silent hall.
Dani cried out and tried to leap out of harm’s way, but Ubrigg’s hand bit into her neck. The dark form released Igor, and he toppled to the floor in a heap. A large, solid figure turned toward her. Ubrigg’s hand fumbled in front of her. The light from his phone revealed the body of their attacker.
Blood-splattered olive skin filled her vision. The wall of ripped and bulging muscle heaved. She dropped her gaze to Igor’s body in the glow. Blood gushed from a gash across his jugular. His trembling hand was coated in red, and his eyes were wide and locked on the floor.
Fear turned her body to stone, but she didn’t tear her gaze away. Then Brock stepped into the light and the floor fell beneath her feet.
Satisfaction filled Brock’s veins as he watched the dying bastard at his feet.
Then he fastened his fingers on the scalpel and looked up.
Ubrigg’s arm was crossed in front of Dani’s chest, and he held her in front of him like a shield.
The phone fell from Ubrigg’s grip and the device danced on the tile, sending flashes of light across the wall.
Brock smirked. He didn’t dare lock eyes with Dani—doing so would be his undoing. He needed to end Ubrigg like he’d ended the guard. And for that, he needed to keep his blood cold. The lights snapped on, and Brock’s pupils adjusted quickly. Ubrigg blinked rapidly and Dani winced.
“Not another step!” Ubrigg’s shaky arm moved. Brock lowered his gaze and froze in his tracks. Ubrigg held an assault rifle, and it was pointed directly at Dani’s side.
“Back up.” He waved.
The tendons in Brock’s legs protested despite his brain telling them to move. He watched Dani’s chest lift in and out on haggard breaths. Her sequined gown flashed with every inhale. He finally met her eyes and curled his hands into fists at his sides.
Her cheeks had sunk into her face, and her skin was so damn pale she rivaled Ubrigg’s lab coat.
Tears dangled on her eyelashes and her lips trembled on a smile.
Every strand of tension in his body weakened, and he dropped the scalpel.
The metal spiraled on the floor as if playing a twisted game of spin the bottle.
It stopped at Ubrigg’s shoe and he kicked it, sending it skittering down the hall.
The tears at Dani’s lashes overflowed and spilled down her cheeks. She closed her eyes as if accepting this as their good-bye.
Hell fucking no.
“Let her go.” He hated the plea that wrenched his larynx.
“Where’s the flash drive?” Ubrigg’s disheveled appearance contradicted every photo Brock had seen of him. His curly brown hair swayed with every movement, his glasses teetered on the end of his nose, and his sharp green eyes were wide and frantic.
A drop of the guard’s blood rolled down Brock’s chest. The hot fluid cooled as it reached his sternum. His hand tingled with the urge to wipe off the evidence of death, but he didn’t dare make a move that would spook Ubrigg.
“Right here.” He dug into his pocket and then held the drive up near his shoulder.
“Good.” Ubrigg’s tongue swept over his pasty lips, and he waved the gun at the floor. “S-Set it down and walk away. If you do as you’re told, I’ll let her go.”