TWENTY-THREE

Leora

The faint scent of leather hit me as I came to, my hands bound tightly behind my back.

Damn it.

Memories of the afternoon trickled back in a disorienting rush—I had been snatched from the safehouse. Peering through half-lidded eyes, I could see the blur of streetlights zipping past. It was dark outside; how long had I been unconscious?

My arm was wrapped in a bloody bandage, marking the spot where they must have cut me. "She's awake, Cas," Mason's voice cut through the silence.

I shifted my weight and managed to sit up.

"Leora, Leora, Leora," Casteel's voice was taunting. "How are you feeling, little bird?"

"Long time no see, Casteel. How's your friend's dick?" I coughed out a laugh, which earned me a furious glance .

His grip whitened on the steering wheel. "You fucking bitch."

"Mind telling me where we're headed?" I asked, trying to gauge our destination.

He glanced back briefly. "Why, so you can signal your boyfriend? Don't worry, we're counting on him showing up."

Moments later, we pulled up to a row house in what looked like a suburban development. Most of the houses here were still under construction. Roughly, Casteel yanked me from the car and pushed me towards the house.

Inside, the darkness was almost complete, broken only by the outline of three large trunks against the walls. They dragged me upstairs to a room with a single chair in the center.

"Deja vu," I remarked, eyeing the chair.

"How are you still talking? We drained like a pint of your blood," Mason scoffed.

"Shut up, Leora. Another word, and we won't bother stopping the bleeding next time we cut you," Casteel threatened, looming inches from my face.

I walked over to the chair and sat down without them needing to force me. They didn't bother with further restraints. Little did these idiots know, I had been training to escape from zip ties. Over a month of preparation was about to pay off. I had to get out of here before my squad risked their lives coming for me.

Fuck. My squad.

They shut me in the room, and I quickly assessed my surroundings. Other than the chair I had been sitting on, the only other piece of furniture was a single trunk under the window, much like the ones I'd seen outside. It seemed deliberately placed for me to notice. I nudged it open with my feet.

Inside, I recoiled in shock. A digital screen was attached to what looked unmistakably like a bomb. They planned to blow us all up.

Crouching down, I managed to get my bound hands from behind me to the front by looping my feet through the ties. With a sharp pull, I snapped the zip ties and freed myself, ignoring the pain that shot through my wrists.

The window above the trunk was barred from the outside. The door, I assumed, was locked.

I needed a plan, fast.

Shaking off my disbelief, I tried the door handle. It turned easily. It was unlocked.

What the hell?

Descending the stairs, I found the house eerily silent and empty—no sign of Casteel or Mason. The back door and all windows were boarded up. The three trunks downstairs were also packed with explosives.

Rushing to the front door, I discovered it was securely locked. A wire extended from the lock, connected to another digital display.

It hit me then—this was a trap. Once my squad arrived and forced the door, the entire place would explode. The plan was messy, sure to require extensive cleanup.

Suddenly, a car screeched outside, followed by the ominous beeping of the trunks. I darted back to one and saw the countdown on its screen: 4 minutes, 51 seconds… 4 minutes, 50 seconds. Fuck .

The squad was here.

Panic surged as sweat beaded my forehead. My strength was sapped from the day's ordeals—no food, significant blood loss. Even if I got out, they might still detonate the bombs.

Then, a loud bang on the main door.

I sprinted towards it.

"Zarek?" I yelled out.

"Leora?" His voice was muffled through the door. "Step back, I'm going to break it down."

"No, no! Stop!" I screamed as he began to pound on the door. "There are explosives everywhere in here. Casteel's set us up to blow. I need to find another way out or… fuck ."

I heard him curse from the other side.

"Is there a timer?" he asked urgently.

"Yes, about four minutes left now."

"Leora, I need to get you out. Let me break the door," he pleaded, his voice filled with desperation.

"No, Zarek! If you break the door, the house will explode. Please, just back away," I begged, tears streaming down my face.

"Leo, are you saying you can't use this door at all?" Logan's voice joined in.

"Exactly," I replied. "There's a device linked to the lock. If the lock breaks, the house goes up. You all need to get out now!"

"I'm not leaving without you, Mi Corazón," Zarek's voice broke.

I couldn't let this be the end for us. "Get back to the car!" I shouted as loud as I could and made my way upstairs.

I had to find another way out. Maybe there was an attic. Running through the upper floor, I desperately searched for any sign of an attic entrance.

There it was—a square panel on the ceiling .

I pulled down the attic ladder, climbed up quickly, and let my eyes adjust to the dim light. Moonlight filtered through a dusty skylight at the back of the attic. I crawled toward it, heart pounding, and managed to open it.

I clambered out onto the roof, but just as I tried to climb down, the ground suddenly wasn't beneath my feet anymore.

An explosion thundered behind me, hurling me into the air. I felt myself falling, a sharp pain rocketing through my head as the ground rushed up to meet me.

My vision blurred, and then, everything went dark.