Page 64 of Wicked and Bound

A guard’s boots scraped closer to the bathroom. Haisley held her breath, easing even deeper in the shadows of the shower stall. The massive glass enclosure might offer some protection if bullets started flying, and she was tucked out of the direct line of sight from both the giant mirror over the sink and the entry.

The bathroom door creaked open. Haisley bit the inside of her cheek to hold in a whimper. She tasted fear and blood.

“Clear!” the guard called after a cursory glance into the dark room.

Haisley’s knees nearly buckled with relief. From her hidden position, she watched him backtrack to the suite’s open area.

“She’s not here,” the other guard reported. “I looked under the bed, in the closet… But the drawer is open. From our surveillance, that means she took her master’s gun. She’s armed.”

Dr. Haynes cursed. “Spread out. Search the whole floor. She can’t have gone far in just a few minutes with the elevators down. And she’s carrying precious cargo now. We can’t risk her life or let her harm herself. And she cannot—under any circumstances—get away.”

Precious cargo.The words sent chills down Haisley’s spine. These people saw her baby as a bargaining chip and a commodity to be sold to the highest bidder.

Over her dead body.

The suite door clicked shut. Haisley counted to twenty before creeping from the bathroom. The hallway beyond their doorwould be crawling with guards. She needed somewhere to hide until Nash could reach her. Somewhere defensible.

Her heart ached. Was he okay? Fighting his way to her? Or… No. She couldn’t think the worst. Nash was the strongest person she knew. He’d come back unscathed from many ops, and he’d survived two years without her. She couldn’t lose him now. Not to death. Not to anything.

Fate wouldn’t be that cruel, right?

She’d taken two steps when the connecting door to the neighboring suite burst open.

More guards poured through. Haisley dove behind the couch, heart in her throat. Three, no, four more armed men. Plus Dr. Haynes was still in the hallway. The odds were getting worse by the second.

“There!” One of them spotted her. “Don’t shoot! Black Velvet wants her unharmed.”

Haisley scrambled backward, keeping the couch between her and the guards. Her mind raced. Her choices were so damn limited. The bedroom connected to the next suite. If she could just reach the door…

A lone figure appeared in the doorway behind the guards. The blonde’s hair was tied back, and she wore black, head-to-toe tactical gear. But even in the shadows, Haisley recognized her face.

Karliah.

The female operative took out the nearest guard with a brutal throat strike, then swept the legs out from under another. “Haisley! Run!”

Dr. Haynes burst back through the main door, brandishing a syringe. “Grab her! Don’t let her escape!”

Haisley sprinted for the bedroom as Karliah engaged the remaining guards. The doctor’s heels clicked against the marble as she continued her pursuit. Haisley slammed the bedroomdoor and turned the lock. That wouldn’t buy her much time…but that handful of seconds might be the difference between life and death.

Across the room, the connecting door to the next suite was locked. Of course it was. She fired two shots at the handle, the sound deafening in the enclosed space. The lock shattered.

Behind her, someone began ramming the bedroom door. The frame cracked.

Haisley yanked the connecting door open and ran through the darkened suite beyond. Stay here and make a stand…or try to reach the stairwell to dash out of the tower? As much as she hated it, she was no match for the squadron of trained soldiers and their assault rifles while she was barefoot, pregnant, and outgunned. She had to find somewhere to hide. Somewhere to hope for the best. Thank god she had Karliah on her side.

Hold on, little one.She pressed a hand to her belly as the other gripped the Glock.Hold on.

She pictured Nash fighting his way to her, refusing to let anything stop him. She had to be just as strong. Had to survive. Had to protect their baby.

She could not lose either of them.

Or her world would end for good.

Nash bolted through the dark chaos as fast as his legs would take him. When he’d strolled into the Midnight Sanctuary a few hours ago, he’d mentally assessed the length from his seat to the door—about thirty feet. He’d covered half that distance before Mila called him out, hell unleashed, and the room descended into dark chaos.

“Run!” Kane yelled in the pitch-black room. “We’ve got your six.”

Grateful as fuck, Nash sprinted, hell-bent for leather, toward the exit.

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