Page 48 of Indecent Proposal

Lifting the lid up, I peered down into the darkness. The fun thing about human nature was that once people found out a secret, they didn’t expect an additional secret behind the first one. Once someone found my security room, they weren’t going to think that there’d be a hidden entrance/exit in there.

I had installed the door behind one of the shelves that contained the nonperishable food, set on the wall opposite from the computer monitors. The hope was that when I emerged, the enemy would be looking at the computers, and would have their back to me. Or, if I was fleeing, I’d close the door after me and the person would be focused on the computers, what they might contain, and if they could find me on them.

But there was always a chance that somehow, Ace had figured out the existence of this passage.

I turned on the flashlight on my rifle and pointed it down into the darkness. I could see the ladder leading into the entrance, the solid walls, and the soft dirt floor, but nothing else. No sign of a booby trap or a camera.

Looked like I could take the risk.

I climbed down the ladder, pulling the trapdoor closed after me and locking myself into darkness. The trapdoor couldn’t lock—I could easily push it back up open again—but I didn’t want to leave it open for an animal to fall in.

Using the light on my rifle scope, I was able to see into the darkness of the narrow passage. There wasn’t anything except dirt and the occasional cobweb. I hadn’t cleaned this place since I’d made it, and while everything was still sturdy, it sure wasn’t gleaming and squeaky clean. There was little room to maneuver, too. If I was stuck here with an enemy, neither of us would really be able to move around.

Better hope it didn’t come to that.

I hustled but tried to keep quiet while I did it, my heart hammering every step of the way. I hated how anxious I was feeling. How worried I was. How I wanted to sprint down the narrow corridor, risking ruining the delicate structure and burying myself alive, if it meant I got there quickly enough to make sure that Claire was safe and unharmed.

Claire.

That was why I was nervous. It hit me like a frying pan to the face and I nearly staggered.

Claire was in trouble, her life was in danger, and that was why I was so on edge. Why I couldn’t treat this just like any other job. Itwasn’tjust any other job, at least not to me. I cared about Claire. I wanted to try a serious relationship with her, for possibly the first time in my life. And now I might lose her, if I didn’t stay on my toes and succeed in protecting her.

I rushed down the corridor as quietly as I could, my ears perked for any noise. I reached the end without incident, until I was at the door that would swing open into the surveillance room.

Had Claire made it safely down there? Had she made it but Ace had followed her? I pressed my ear to the wall and listened intently. There was pure silence on the other side. If anything was happening, it was being done without sound.

My gun at the ready, I pushed the door open.

It moved soundlessly, thank fuck, because I regularly kept the hinges oiled. I held the gun up, finger on the trigger, but the room was empty. The monitors at the desk displayed the various camera feeds, and appeared to be uninterrupted. Looked like Ace had just disrupted the feeds from going up into the cloud, rather than being able to shut them all down completely.

I closed the door behind me and peered at the monitors. The interior cameras had my heart leaping into my throat: there was a fight going on above.

This hidden room was soundproofed so that nobody above could hear any noise down below, which was a good safety precaution but meant that if you were in the room, you also couldn’t hear what was going on above you. I would have to rely on what played on the monitors and try to pick the right moment.

My heart hammered away as I watched Ace grab Claire when Claire attempted to flee.That’s my girl, I couldn’t help but think with some pride. Not even a damn gun in her face could keep Claire cowed.

Ace’s back was currently to where the opening was if I wanted to pop up, but she also had a death grip on Claire. I had to act fast—but could I take the risk that my appearance would cause Ace to automatically fire at Claire and kill her?

Fuck.I gritted my teeth. It was a risk I’d have to take at one point or another. There was never going to be a ‘safe’ or ‘perfect’ moment to come in and involve myself. I had to find a way to treat this like any other mission and keep my head cool.

Ace forced Claire down onto the floor, on her stomach, Ace’s boot in her back—and I climbed up the ladder, shoving the trapdoor open hard and fast so that it made a loudbang.

Ace brought her gun up and I fired, hitting her in the shoulder. Fuck, I’d hoped for the head. She fell backwards with the force of the shot, landing on the couch, but she wasn’t down yet.

Claire screamed on instinct, and then looked annoyed with herself for it. I would’ve snorted in amusement if I wasn’t focused on getting out of the damn trapdoor. Claire didn’t have the training to suppress her instincts, but she was going to forever be upset with herself for ever showing what she considered weakness.

She was truly stubborn as hell. I loved her for it.

I quickly moved out of the trapdoor and onto my feet, just in time for Ace to recover and lunge at me. I’d figured she’d do that, and I was willing to sacrifice my chance to get another shot off at her if it meant I was on my feet instead of at an awkward angle with my legs still in the trapdoor on the ladder.

“Motherfucker,” she snarled. “You’ve been giving me a hell of a headache.”

I was surprised a sniper wanted to kill me up close and personal like this, but I supposed if she was really this pissed at me for complicating things, it would make sense she wanted an up-close kill. “I’d apologize, but it’s my job.”

I dodged her and kicked her full in the chest as she came at me, sending her flying back again.

She jumped to her feet and bared her teeth at me. “I sat right across from you at that café, and you had no idea who or what I really was. Some fucking bodyguard you are.”

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