Page 84 of Hidden Ascent

“I didn’t mean to sound rude. I actually thought you looked like one of the guys in charge.” She was getting better at lying. “But I didn’t want to assume anything and get you in trouble.”

“I can get you a cup of water without getting in trouble.”

“Would you mind? I’d really appreciate it.”

He looked her over. “Sure.”

Isla crossed her arms while she waited. Her plan was working. She didn’t need God to save her. He’d given her the brains to work stuff out for herself.

When Tag returned, carrying a chipped mug, she approached the bars as calmly as she could.

“Thank you. That’s really nice. I didn’t expect any of you to be nice to me.”

“Don’t get used to it. ’Cause I’m not a nice guy. You understand?”

“Right. I do know that. But I always thought the toughest guys were those who could behave with a certain amount of benevolence.”

He grunted, impressed with himself, then passed the mug through the bars.

“Only the strongest can afford to be,” she said as she reached for the drink.

“Exactly.”

With a smile on her face, her hand shot past the cup, fastening to his arm instead. She yanked him toward her, smashing his head against the bars.

The mug shattered on the floor before the guy joined it, unconscious.

Isla dropped to her knees and tugged his body around so she could get access to the keys in his pocket.

Maybe she wasn’t so bad at this undercover stuff after all.

“Come on. Hurry,” she said to herself as she wiggled her hand into his pocket, hooking her finger on the key.

“Hey!” Another man entered the room as she pulled at the keys. They had gotten caught on the pocket, and she had to abandon them when the newcomer stormed toward the cell.

She scooted back. “I don’t know what happened. He just collapsed.”

But this guy wasn’t as easy to fool as the last. “What’d you do to Tag?” the man yelled, dragging his friend backward and retrieving the keys for himself.

Isla stood and pressed herself against the back wall as the man unlocked her cell.

“You think you’re a clever little FBI agent?” he said, flinging the door wide. “Well, let me show you what we do to clever girls.”

This guy was bigger than Mason, and it was a smaller space than the bar. But the door was now open. He’d be slower than her, so, if she could get past him somehow, she had a chance.

When he reached out to hit her, she blocked him, but the weight of his punch still felt like a blow.

She heaved her knee up, but he twisted, taking the hit in the leg. Then, he smashed himself into her body, plastering her against the wall and knocking all of her breath from her body.

She struggled to inhale, her diaphragm paralyzed from the force.

He took a couple steps back, smiled, then charged her again. She tried to duck out of the way, but his bulk was too massive, and he still caught her shoulder, pinning it to the wall before grabbing her by the shoulders and throwing her sideways against the other wall where her head bounced off the concrete and she was knocked out.

* * *

Jay looked almost bored when he and Simmo arrived back at the old hospital, but inside, he breathed a sigh of relief. And it wasn’t just because he would get Isla to safety. As far as she knew, he’d betrayed her. He could see on her face that she’d fallen for his ruse as much as Simmo had.

But it had been his intent for her to believe it. If she got any sense he was faking, he couldn’t be sure she’d be able to play along with the ploy herself, and he couldn’t risk that. So, he’d gone in hard, and she’d believed every word he’d said. But soon, he’d be able to reveal what his true motives had been—to protect her. He’d do anything to make sure she was safe.

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