29
LEAH
“Now?” Suzie asks.
“No, not yet.”
“Now?”
“Not yet.”
“What about now?”
“Suzie, I’ve got this. I’m trying, okay? I’ll let you know when I get it.”
I hear an annoyed huff behind me. “Fine. Don’t bite my head off.”
Eliza watches with wide eyes, hugging herself as Suzie and I bicker like teenagers.
Suzie holds one end of a piece of yarn we’ve unraveled from her sweater. The other half is attached to an old wire we found on the floor in the corner of the old office. She tugs, and I’m leveraging the wire, trying to reach a key hanging from an old nail stickingin the wall through a small window that looks down on the warehouse floor from the office Marius has locked us in.
It’s the extra key ring Marius has given the men downstairs in case he isn’t here, and they need to get to us.
I just hope none of the guards down there looks up to see the wire sticking out of the window. They’re downstairs, playing a game of cards, whiling away the time, waiting for some sort of word from someone about what to do with us. They lay their guns on the table, though, a clear sign things could turn bad in a heartbeat.
“Ugh!” I slump back against the wall, trying to catch the breath I’ve been holding, and ease my arms from the ache of holding them in position for too long.
“Can I help?” Eliza asks.
“No, sweetheart. There’s really nothing for you to do, but I appreciate it.”
My daughter, despite the terrifying circumstances, is holding up rather well, or at least as well as can be expected. Suzie and I take turns holding her and telling her funny stories, and she curls around Benji to go to sleep. I notice the big Great Dane keeps watch on her and us all.
“Really, Mom. I can do it. I play fishing during recess, so I’ve had practice.”
Suzie and I exchange glances. I don’t want Eliza involved in this any more than she already is. Those men won’t hesitate to shoot.
“Please, Mom? I know I can do it.”
“Give her a shot, Leah.” I shoot Suzie a sharp, angry look, but she just shrugs. “What? Neither of us has had any luck.”
I sigh and bow to the wisdom of my best friend and my seven-year-old. I lift her and hold her tightly as she looks out the window, ready at any hint of attention turning our way to pull her back down.
Eliza hums quietly to herself as she works, biting the inside of her cheek as she focuses, just like I do. But every muscle in my body is tense, anxious, praying my daughter isn’t spotted first, that she doesn’t drop the key or make a noise that will cause the men to shoot first and ask questions later.
“I got it!” Eliza whispers.
And sure enough, as Suzie pulls back, helping Eliza and me bring in the wire, the extra key is hooked on the end of it. I put her down, and she takes the key off the hook in the wire and presents it proudly to her Aunt Suzie.
“Great job, sweetheart.” I give her a big hug
“I knew you could do it.” Suzie ruffles Eliza’s hair, then straightens and looks at me, the smile sliding from her face. “Are you ready?”
I take a deep breath, holding Eliza tighter. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”
Suzie, far more athletic than I am, uses her upper body strength to boost herself through the small window on the opposite side of the room that looks down on the back of the warehouse. Her shirt catches on the sharp shards, and I hear her hiss quietly with pain, but she wriggles through and drops silently to the other side. A heartbeat later, the back door to the office opens.
“Okay, Eliza, just like we talked about. Just like we practiced,” I whisper.
