Chapter 22 #2
“Ace, oh my God, Ace!” she exclaims, and I hurry to turn the volume down on the phone. “What the hell is going on? Nick is ready to call the whole police force and storm the place.”
“Tell him to wait. Trent has a magical arsenal up here. I need to talk to Tom or Gil. Now.”
For once, Gemma doesn’t keep asking questions and passes the phone to one of the twins.
“What’s going on?” Gil asks.
“Trent thinks he has control over you guys. Did Gemma bring any runes or crystals or anything?”
“Yes to crystals.”
“Find a way to scratch runes onto them. Can you fly?”
“No.”
“Have Hasan take you to the balcony and bring the fake runes. You have to act like you’re under Trent’s control, okay?”
“Yeah, but—”
Hasan grabs my arm. “Someone is coming.”
“I’m sorry. We don’t have much time. Just meet him down there. Be fast.” I hang up, shove the phone in my pocket, and move onto the first step of the spiral staircase.
“Be careful, Ace,” Hasan says, and leans in for a quick kiss. He pulls the hidden door closed and everything goes dark. I hold my breath, squeezing my eyes shut, and take a silent step backward, going up another stair.
Suddenly, all the noise in the office cuts off and the silence is deafening. Shit. Blindly feeling for the railing, I climb up two more stairs, looking for the light coming from under the door leading to the floor above me. My heart is racing and my palms are sweaty.
“She’s not in here,” someone says from inside the office. “But the boards are down. Maybe she escaped.”
“She didn’t jump from the tenth floor,” Charles says. Dammit. I thought he’d stay passed out longer. “We have to find her before Mr. Trent finds out she’s still alive. He’ll have our heads for this, you know.”
“I’ll check the security cameras,” the other man says. He has to be the guard, and if he’s the one that was watching over the children, then this could be my only chance to get to them. I hurry up the rest of the stairs, pausing by the door. I grip the railing, trying to calm my nerves.
“Yes,” Jacques says, and I assume he’s still talking to Mr. Trent. “I can translate, but I warn you this kind of dark magic can come with a cost.”
“Whatever the cost, I assure you, I can pay it,” Mr. Trent replies. I grit my teeth, wanting nothing more than to go a round or two with that fucker right now. “Now get to work. I want the whole thing translated in an hour.”
“That’s impossible,” Jacques counters.
“Do it. Unless you want me to order you to go after that worthless little witch your precious Acelina cared so much about.”
“How dare you speak her name!” Jacques roars.
“Watch your tone,” Trent sneers, and I can imagine the smug look on his face. “You are mine now whether you like it or—what the hell was that?”
Yes! The guys landed on the balcony. I hold my breath again, listening. If Trent doesn’t buy the lie we’re feeding him, then I’ll have to act now and hope we can still get everyone out alive.
“The others,” Jacques says, sounding defeated. “I’ve summoned them like you asked.”
“And you tried to say you couldn’t. Open the door. Let them in,” he says to Jac, and a few seconds pass. I hear a glass door slide open and heavy footfalls on the floor as the guys come inside the penthouse.
“What’s happening?” Thomas asks. “Why are we here? What’s going on?”
“I’m sorry,” Jacques tells them. “I called you here.” I inch closer to the door, dropping down to my knees to peer through the space under it, only able to see two pairs of feet that I think belong to the twins.
“That doesn’t matter,” Mr. Trent says, and walks over. He’s moving slow, making me think he’s a little afraid of the guys. Hasan alone is intimidating. “Look at the size of this one,” Trent mutters to himself.
“They get larger at night,” Jacques says.
I move a little closer, terrified of Trent not buying any of this. “Believe every word they say,” I whisper, trying to will Trent into buying the BS. “Just buy it.”
“Okay,” Trent says, and my eyes open. Did I push him, or is he really that desperate and full of himself? I suppose it doesn’t matter. “And when night falls?”
“All of our powers are amplified,” Jacques goes on. “Including theirs. What you’re seeing now…it’s only a fraction of what they shall become.”
Trent gets excited, and I take the opportunity to move right up next to the door. Knowing the guys still have the ability to hear things humans can’t, I lightly tap on the door. One of the guys moves closer.
“If you can hear me, scuff your foot on the floor,” I whisper.
Whoever is next to the door drags his foot back.
I exhale and close my eyes, trying to feel who’s next to me.
It only takes me a few seconds to know it’s Hasan.
“I think the guard is downstairs looking for me. If you’re alone up there with Trent, give me another sign. ”
Hasan shuffles his weight, putting one foot down heavily on the wooden floor. Okay…Trent’s alone with the guys. This is it. The timing is perfect. We’ll get Trent, save the kids, get the hell out of here.
Or at least we will if nothing goes horribly wrong.