Page 27 of You're To Blame 2

He kissed my temple. “See you downstairs.”

I waved then applied makeup to my bruised skin.

Twenty minutes later, Mason and I hung out with our friends again. I paced myself on the champagne consumption.

Music blared around the room. Everyone turned their attention to the stage. Matt slipped away. Brian and Dad whisked Mason into the next room to discuss football stats. I asked dad the moment I rejoined the party if he could talk to Tate for a little while. I told him I had a wedding present I wanted to present to him but, I wanted it to be a surprise. Dad was excited. He jumped at the chance. I think he really wanted an excuse to discuss sports.

Our plan was set in motion. Matt and me held a fake conversation outside the basement door.

“It’s time,” Rocco’s voice came through the ear buds.

The entire house went dark. Matt picked the lock. He yanked the door open, and we slipped inside. I closed the door behind us. The moment we were down the stairs. I peeled off my heels and stuck my feet in ballerina slippers. There was no way I was running through the basement in heels. We placed our backs against the wall and inched forward. The lights popped back on.

“Your five-minute window starts now,” Rocco reminded us.

The cameras were on a continuous loop. It would appear to the guard watching the camera that Matt and I were still deep in a conversation.

Guns drawn Matt rounded the corner first. We trekked down a dirt floor corridor. The musty, stale air hung around us. Tiny orange light fixtures lit our path.

I heard a commotion in the distance. Matt raised his hand, halting my steps. He pointed his gun in front of him and jogged ahead.

“Matt,” I yelled in a whisper.

I trudged after him. A rusty old cell came into view. Two men tussled in front of us. The men broke apart and my mouth fell open.Tate. He charged the guard, slamming him against the ground. Three other guards surrounded Tate.

“That’s enough,” Matt roared.

“Get up against the wall,” he ordered.

“Took you long enough,” Tate grinned behind the black dusting of hair over his lips. He wore clean slacks, a button-down navy shirt, and sneakers. I guess he was allowed fresh clothes, but not a razor.

He’d been down here for weeks. Tears threatened to burst forth. But there wasn’t time for that. We needed to move quick. I stalked forward out of the darkness, pointing the Glock at the man to my left. I squeezed thetrigger. The dummy round slammed into his chest, knocking him to the ground.

Matt pointed his weapon at the other two guards, firing multiple rounds. The guards dropped to the dirt floor. “Tate.” Matt tossed a Glock to him.

“I’ll zip tie and gag them, then we’ll need to move. We are running out of time,” Matt said.

Tate never looked at me. Why?

Matt removed the keys from one of the guard’s pockets, then uncuffed Tate.

“Let’s go,” Matt ordered.

We fell in line behind him, running toward the exit.

“Rocco, we are coming up.”

“Ok, time for black out number two.” Rocco counted down.

Matt gripped the door knob. The moment Rocco said one, Matt swung open the door.

A blood-curdling scream released from Megan the moment we felt our way into the ballroom, creeping behind her.

The lights popped back on. Gasps sounded around the room. The guest whispered and stared. Mason ran into the room. His brow wrinkled as he stared between us.

We didn’t really need Megan to do anything, but I enjoyed the theatrics.

Our parents poured into the room. Mom and dad’s mouths gaped. Melissa burst into tears. Brian gripped his hair speechless.

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