Meanwhile, I pried open the bulky door. Thankfully, no alarm was triggered.
“See? Easy,” Lee said.
Admittedly, he’d made impressive work of security features I hadn’t even been able to name.
I double-checked the magazines of the pistols I’d lifted from the guards. A shotgun would feel more at home in my hands, but for now, these would have to be enough.
“Any chance you’ll change your mind?” I asked, waving a weapon at him.
Lee patted the taser in his coat pocket. “Generous, as always. I’ll manage.”
We hadn’t taken more than two steps when the sound of someone rushing down the hall made us twist back around. I lifted my pistol, both hands braced on the cold metal. Shit, was there asilentalarm not mentioned on the blueprints?
But it wasn’t more guards filing in.
Cliff appeared in the doorway, his breathing labored and his hair slightly askew from its formal style. He’d gotten his hands on a semi-automatic rifle himself, I noted. As our eyes locked, we lowered our weapons at the same time.
“Thank fuck I caught you guys,” he said as I scanned the air behind him.
“Where is she?” I didn’t have to saywho.
“Sylvia’s alive,” Cliff said. “The others too, but…Fuck.I need your help—now.”
At once, Lee whipped out the pendant, brushing a thumb over the gilded diamond. The stone was still yellow, which was a slight balm to my nerves, but that only meant Delilah’s heart was still beating. That didn’t guarantee the fairies’ safety.
“What happened?” Lee snapped as he let the pendant drop back under his shirt.
“An ambush in the security hall. We underestimated how thorough these people are. We were outnumbered. I couldn’t… They got their hands on the others, using them for leverage. I don’t know how long they’ll last with these guys. I barely made it out.” Cliff raked a hand through his hair, his voice thick with emotion. A self-loathing grimace flickered over his face like he knew he’d failed them. “Forget the plan. These people are fuckingpsychos, and I need you guys.”
“Shit! Where are they holding them?” I started forward before my mind had fully caught up. Sylvia was in danger. I would burn this entire place down if it meant ensuring she was alive and well.
“In a secure wing,” Cliff said, reloading his rifle. He nodded for us to follow, headed back toward the corridor. “I think I saw another way in through the fire exit. We can maneuver around their main defense.”
I glanced back over my shoulder at the loading bay passage.Fuck. If Delilah and the others weren’t able to trigger the lights, we would be going up against a fully-armed squadron with literally zero advantage; from dangerous to goddamn suicide in the blink of an eye. Sweat beaded the back of my neck as I ran through our options, which were bleak.
There was no time for both. I couldn’t just carry on with my end of the mission when Sylvia could be having her wings torn off one by one.
“Lee, stay here. Get a visual on the loading bay, see if there’s a way to disable the doors,” I said. “That’ll buy us some time, at least.”
I jolted as Lee seized my arm and pulled me back. I shot him a bewildered look, wrenching myself free, but he doubled down, locking his hand on me.
“Jon, get back. That’s not Cliff.”
“You drunk or something?” Cliff gave him a derisive once-over that could strip paint. “Of course it’s me, asshole.”
Lee lifted his chin. He studied Cliff up and down with a cold thread of certainty that set my nerves on edge.
“Synthetic fabric, stiff construction, shoddy tailoring,” Lee clicked his tongue. “A cheap, off-the-rack suit if I ever saw one. An eyesore, actually.”
“You’ve got to be fucking with me,” Cliff said, livid. “We don’t have time for whatever diva shit you’re pulling.” He scoffed and threw me a look—can you believe this guy?
“It’s not Armani,” Lee hammered in. “I’d never let even my worst enemy walk into public in that thing.”
I frowned at my own tuxedo—or what was left of it. The designer jacket had been discarded in the lounge, but the pants were made of the same luxurious cashmere. Even the crisp white shirt was cinched to fit perfectly, and Lee had made sure we appreciated these details as he pressed the suits into our hands earlier.
I shared the dread pooling on Lee’s face. Slowly, I lifted my pistol at Cliff.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” Cliff snapped. “Sylvia isliterallyin enemy hands, and you’re wasting time listening to this idiot?”
