Total pages in book: 158
Estimated words: 145803 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 729(@200wpm)___ 583(@250wpm)___ 486(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 145803 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 729(@200wpm)___ 583(@250wpm)___ 486(@300wpm)
Harold swore under his breath, glanced at his watch and stood up, hurrying toward the closet. “Check on the balcony. She has to be somewhere.”
He flipped on the light, gave a look around, shoved at the clothes hanging in the closet and then flipped the light off again and went to the master bath to inspect the shower and tub.
“We have to get out of here. The cameras are going to come on. Move it, Robert.”
Robert. Not Simon. She’d seen the name Robert on one of the uniforms just tonight and maybe a couple of other times. She’d never observed that he’d taken undue notice of her. There was no sound to indicate the two security guards had vacated her room, but the feeling of impending danger was beginning to fade.
Vienna was afraid to try to move. If she was wrong and they were tricking her, she would be helpless to defend herself. But if she didn’t try to get herself out of the tight space, her body would be in a hell of a bad situation when she finally was able to come out of the paralysis.
“Don’t be a baby,” she whispered to herself aloud and once again concentrated on the arm that faced the opening. She needed to slide it down and out, just let it drop beneath the bench.
“Vienna? Snowflake? Answer me. Where the hell are you?”
She heard the anxiety in Zale’s voice.
“Rainier, look for her. She could be passed out anywhere.” Zale was already in the bedroom and practically hurling the door to the master bath off the hinges.
“Here. The closet. Under bench.” That was the best description she could give, and her voice croaked like a hoarse frog.
“The place is bugged, Zale,” Rainier said. “Even found cameras. We’re automatically jamming everything, so we’re good, but literally, every room has bugs. Someone took their time in here.”
Zale swore as he flooded the closet with light and went to his knees, peering under the bench. At first, he didn’t see her, but she managed to get her arm to drop into his sight.
“Vienna.” He breathed her name like a benediction. As if she was his world and the relief he felt at finding her was so profound he could barely breathe. “How did you get yourself in there?”
Very gently, he opened her fingers and removed the knife from her palm. “Let’s see if we can get you out of there.”
Her eyelids were already drooping. He was the best sight, but even he couldn’t prevent the strange paralysis that took over when she had used her “gift” for too long. “Harold and Robert came into the room after me.” Her voice was that strange, hoarse whisper. If Harold and Robert were two of the men on Wallin’s security force that were prepared to kill him and any agent sent to protect him, Zale and Rainier needed to know.
Zale managed to get his hand inside the small space, following her arm up to her shoulder. With exquisite gentleness, he angled her arm downward so her shoulder followed. His hand helped her shoulder through the narrow opening and then guided her head out. When he had one shoulder and her head and arm out, he waited a moment, studying how to get her other shoulder out without hurting her.
Vienna couldn’t help him. She was just grateful he was there and not the two security guards.
Rainier’s lithe frame filled the closet door. “Is she all right? Did they drug her?” There was a hint of something ugly, a temper bordering on getting out of control smoldering beneath the calm exterior.
She tried to open her eyes beyond the narrow slit she was managing to see his expression, but she couldn’t.
“No, they didn’t do this. We’re going to have to check our room as well. They have access to it with their keys, and we were gone for a while.”
Zale’s hand slid into the opening and he once more gently maneuvered her body, turning her slightly so he could manipulate her shoulder through the narrow space. Now both shoulders were out. He caught her under her arms and pulled, twisting her slightly so she was emerging on her side to make her smaller.
She was a heavy rag doll that Zale had to carefully drag out from under the bench onto the floor of the closet. He immediately began to massage her left leg.
“Rainier, massage her arms. I’ll get her legs. I don’t know how long she was in there, but the space was cramped. She was hiding from the security guards. Both Harold and Robert were in here. That was all I got before she went out on me.”
Rainier crouched down beside her and began to knead her right arm. “At least the bastards didn’t find her. Instead, they took their time putting bugs and cameras all over her suite.”