Page 65 of Thorn

With his free hand, he pulled the door shut behind him. That might buy him a few seconds.

“Fifty-four, Fifty-three…”

Thorn’s phone buzzed. He pulled it from his pocket and swiped, as he took off down the hall.

They’re in the building.The text read.

Shit, not two minutes out.

“They’re in,” Thorn called out to his team.

He shoved his phone into his pocket as he raced down the hall toward the far end near the shower rooms. Without breaking stride, he reached out and pulled the fire alarm. Immediately, the bright whirring alarm sounded. Thorn hoped it was connected to the fire station and that within minutes, fire fighters would be on scene.

He reached back and felt the side of his pack, grasping for the IV stand. As he reached the window, he turned his back to look up the hall.

People emerged from their rooms, looking confused and put out.

“Take the stairs.” Thorn yelled in French. “Front stairs are down there. Here are the back stairs. Hurry. Hurry. Move!” Then he repeated his commands in English.

His words seemed to do their job. That and the woman passed out on his shoulders.

The complacency of a fire-drill fell off as the people realized they were on the third floor in a possible fire. They pushed at each other trying to get down the stairs faster. With the stairs clogged and the hall empty, Thorn used the IV stand to smash out the window, he turned and swiped around the edges, clearing the shards as best he could.

He couldn’t fit through the opening, with Juliette and his backpack on him.

Leaning out, he swiped the IV stand across the fire escape, quickly clearing the worst of the glass.

He rolled Juliette over the sill.

She lay there on the grill of the fire platform, the wind whipping at her pink nighty. The ground was three stories below.

Her eyes fluttered open.

“I’m Thorn. I’m the good guy.” He planted his hands on either side of the window frame and stuck his boot through.

Juliette moved to sit up.

“There’s broken glass. Stay still.”

She didn’t listen. She struggled to sit up.

“Look,” Thorn said as he ducked out of the window to crouch on the small landing beside her. “I’m trying to save you. The bad guys are downstairs, and they’re on their way up.” He’d let her interpret bad guys in anyway she wanted to. “If you fight against me, we just don’t have a good shot at getting away. They have a team. If they get to you, there’s not a lot I can do.” Thorn stood up and reached above his head to the ladder that he’d scoped out when his team had first parked in the alley that morning. Even the adrenaline coursing through his veins didn’t help as he tugged at the bottom rung. It didn’t budge. Thorn got a better grip and leaped in the air to use his weight to help bring it down. But it was stuck just over his head.

“Thorn.” Nutsbe’s voice was in his ear. “I’ve got you up on satellite imaging now. You pushed the team outside with the alarm. We’re running the photos from your phone. Our count is eight. I’m assuming those texts were from Brigitte. You might not be there all alone. It could be she’ll help. You have to assume the Omega crew have eyes on your movements. Don’t take the fire escape down.”

He’d figured that was the case. The hell he’d crawl down the side of the building to hand Juliette over to Billy fucking Watts. “Roger,” Thorn said. “Up it is.”

Thorn tried one more time to slide the ladder into place so that up was an option. It was a no-go.

Thorn rounded on Juliette. She was lying very still, just as he’d asked. As he crouched, Thorn pulled out a police-duty zip tie and fastened it around her bandaged wrist. Things had gone from bad to worse.

Juliette frowned at it.

Yup, this is gonna suck for both of us.It was part of his equation that he’d need to be hands-free. Kneeling, Thorn could feel the glass shards grinding into his knees. He pulled a length of parachute cord from his pocket. “I’m going to put you back across my shoulder now.” He didn’t stop his movement while he spoke, sticking the cord between his teeth and talking through a clenched jaw. “You’re going to keep your eyes tightly shut. And your going to keep your body as relaxed as you can possibly make it.”

He pressed up from his squat with Juliette draped across his shoulders. Though he knew it would hurt, he bounced her up and forward, edging her closer to his neck. “I’m sorry for this.” With quick practiced hands, he fed the cord through her zip tie, wrapped her leg and pulled a quick knot, securing her much the way he’d used his hand to as they exited. He took an end of the cord and stuck it through the metal survival loop of his tactical belt. “Believe me, this will be as uncomfortable for me as it is for you. We’re in this together.” He tied a figure eight on a bend knot.

She’d stay in place.

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