Page 35 of Shattered Love

Warner led our group back upstairs, Aiden still slung over his shoulder. Every now and then, I saw his eyes twitch, a notable sign that he would be waking soon. Hopefully, he’d stay unconscious until we were somewhere safer.

There were no windows in the medical room, but there was a singular window in the back bedroom of the building. It faced the back of the camp, only two rows of tents and the gate sitting behind it. And right now, there were no guards, most of them out front.

“Alright, who’s first?” Warner said, slowly dropping Aiden onto the floor.

Sasha raised her hand, stepping toward the window, opening the glass, and leaning over the ledge. Mina and I leaned over her shoulders, taking in the drop. It was higher than the gate, about double, so around twenty feet.

The three of us gulped in unison. It wasn’t going to be a comfortable drop. And if anything went wrong, we could get seriously injured.

We backed away from the window, our gazes bouncing between each other, as we realized this may not be the smartest idea. Maybe a shoot out was our best bet. In fact, I’d put good money on Rainer, Murphy, Warner, and Sasha getting us out of it alive.

Turning on my heel, I opened my mouth, ready to suggest a new plan, when I noticed Murphy. He had shed the bed of all the sheets and blankets, knotting the ends together with expertise.

I quirked a brow at him when he looked up from one knot. He shot me a sly smile. “Did I ever tell you I was a boy scout? Aced all the knot tying.”

Laughter bubbled in my chest, and I fought the urge to throw my arms around him. How had I ever lived without this man?

Once everything was tied together, he threw one end out the window, holding tight to the other side. The length didn’t quite reach the ground, but if you shimmied all the way down, it was only a few feet to the grass below. And thankfully it was grass because I don’t think I’d have the stomach to attempt this if there was cement below.

Warner and Murphy both gripped the end of the blankets before Warner gestured with one hand. “Ladies first.”

Once again, Sasha stepped toward the window. She climbed onto the ledge, shifting her body outside, before gripping onto the makeshift rope, lowering her body. Mina and I watched raptly, eyeing her technique, but also there in case she slipped.

Leaning over the ledge, I said lowly, “The second you hit the ground, climb the fence and run. The longer we stay here, the bigger the chance they’ll catch us again.”

Sasha nodded fiercely and then her focus was on her hands as she slowly but surely shimmied down the sheets. It only took several minutes until she hopped off the end, landing with a silent thud against the grass, but I held my breath the entire time.

Sending us a salute, she turned on her heel, disappearing into the tents and heading toward the fence.

“Mina, you go next,” I whispered.

Guiding her over the ledge, I kept a hand on her arm until she was confident in her hold and then she followed Sasha’s path. Waiting with bated breath again, I exhaled deeply when she landed, taking off in a quick sprint.

I knew it was my turn next, but I turned to the three conscious men in the room, eyeing Aiden. The plan was great except for one caveat. “How is the last person going to get down?”

In fact, that wasn’t the only problem. Could one person truly hold the weight of the second to last person? And what about Aiden? Even if we managed to wake him, he couldn’t climb down himself.

The three men seemed to realize that, all of them glancing at each other. I expected Rainer to volunteer to go last, but when I looked at him, his face was ashen.

Murphy realized this as well and he dropped his hold on the sheets, going to his friend. Whispering low under his breath, he clasped a hand on Rainer’s shoulder. Rainer’s head was bent in silence, his chest rising and falling quickly.

After a few more moments, the two broke apart and Rainer stepped toward the window.

“Rainer’s going to go next. And then you’re going to wake up your brother. He needs to attempt it, but Rainer will be there to catch him.”

“And the two of you?” I asked because I knew they weren’t going to let me be one of the last two.

“Don’t worry about us,” Murphy suggested, and I laughed lightly. As if. My whole world seemed to revolve around worrying these days.

Warner must have seen my disbelief because he gave me one of his classic, haughty smirks. “We’ll be fine, babe. He’s the one you should be worrying about.” He nodded toward Rainer, who shook near the ledge of the window.

I had never seen him like this. Even after attacks, he was calm, cool, and collected. But right now, his entire body shook like a leaf.

Stepping closer to him, I kneeled near the window. “Are you scared of heights?”

Rainer looked at me from under his lashes, his glare less intimidating when it was filled with fear. “Everyone’s afraid of something,” he muttered.

I opened my mouth to give him some sort of reassurance, but he was already sliding down the sheets, his eyes closed. I wanted to yell that closing your eyes was a terrible idea while climbing, but knew he wouldn’t appreciate it, as well as I couldn’t draw attention to what we were doing.

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