He holds his side when he tries to reach the grate. He’s not even close. He jumps up once and comes back down, collapsing on the mattress.
It takes a moment before he answers me. “That asshole in the mask. After Thomas drugged you, he turned on me and started kicking me. I was tied to that chair and couldn’t even defend myself.”
We have to get out of here. I scan the room and there’s nothing for him to stand on.
“How’d you get up there?”
“Mine was in our bathroom. I stood on the sink and pushed myself up.”
“How’d you get yours open?”
“I have a wooden plunger that I poked it with until it popped off.”
Ethan eyes the grate from the mattress. “I’m not sure I’d fit through there even if it was open and I could get to it.”
“How long did they keep you tied up?”
“I woke up untied. Thomas drugged me once the other dude finished beating the shit out of me. I don’t think I’ve been awake long. Everything is sort of running together.”
Things are so much worse for Ethan and I’m sure Tyler is the reason.
“The roof is really steep. I got outside but couldn’t get anywhere. We’re in the French Quarter and I think this building is an old convent that’s now a museum. I saw two different carriages full of tourists last night. I waved at them but they didn’t see me. We’re pretty far from the street.”
“Well, at least we’re not too far from home. That sucks no one saw you.”
“Yeah, but if it’s a regular tour, they’ll be back tonight. I’m really torn about taking a chance on our own or trusting Thomas not to kill us. But after seeing you like this, we can’t stay here.”
He runs his hands across his face. “I’ve been thinking the same thing. We’ve got to figure out where we go if we get out of here. Who do we trust?”
I shrug. “I don’t know. Thomas told me yesterday that if we called the cops he would know and if we called our dads he would know. Told me my dad and your family is debating whether or not to defy him and leave the island. Do you think we’d be better off staying here?”
Ethan closes his eyes and it’s so hard to see him like this. “I don’t know, Anna. I might have said yes until he killed Agent Parker. My gut says to scream until you’re hoarse at anything and everything that passes by your window. Don’t even wait for it to be dark. But the thought of someone out there hunting you down makes me want to kill someone. Maybe if we could get out of here and get in touch with Agent Williams…”
“Oh my God, I totally forgot to tell you! Agent Williams’s grandson is in the room next to us.”
“What?” Ethan sits up quickly then groans, grabbing his side again. “What the hell is going on? Do you think he was blackmailed into giving us up? Does the grandson know anything about any of this?” Ethan asks.
“His name is Noah, and, no, he doesn’t. He’s young, just a year older than Teeny, and pretty terrified. He got here about two days before us. And if it was blackmail, why’s he still here?”
Ethan moves slowly to the edge of the mattress and rolls to a sitting position. “So who’s the guy with Thomas? You said it was someone you knew from Florida. What’s he got to do with this?”
Ethan doesn’t know about Tyler. I just didn’t see the point in talking about him. Now, it seems like a pretty bad idea to tell him he’s an old boyfriend, especially since he seems to be taking out his hurt feelings on Ethan.
“Just a guy I knew. I haven’t talked to him since I yanked that mask off, so I don’t know why he’s here.”
He has a funny grin. “You yanked his mask off?”
“Yeah. I couldn’t quit thinking his voice was familiar and it was making me nuts. So I grabbed it when he got close enough.”
“How old is he? He doesn’t seem that old.”
I shrug, then realize he probably can’t see that. “Not sure. Not much older than us.”
“Did he go to your school?”
Ethan knows I’m hiding something, and I swore I’d never lie to him again. But I can hear that tone in his voice. It won’t help if he knows we used to date. No telling what Ethan will say to him. Thomas doesn’t need a reason to decide Ethan is too much trouble to keep around, and he can’t handle another beating.
“No, just someone who hung out at the beach near our apartment.”
