Page 156 of The Protégé

I ran toward the building, but it was closed. So I moved onto the next building. One of them had to be open. My leg hurt so much. I glanced down and blood had stained my pants. My fanny pack had ripped too. Dandelions had poured out of it.

“Where are you, Elena?” A gunshot rang out.

My heart gave a nervous jolt. I ran toward a building with several cars parked in the lot, rushing into the lobby. A security guard rose from the desk.“Are you all right, miss?

“There’s a crazy guy with a gun!”

“Come inside!” He buzzed me in and pointed to the back. As I ran down the hallway, I heard him call the police.

Then I heard gunshots.

Two men and a woman exited from a room.

“Go hide!” I shouted at them. “There’s a gunman out there!”

I ran to a storage room and limped toward the back by the window. If he came in, maybe I could break the window. I crouched behind the stacked boxes with my heart beating erratically and pain shooting up my leg.

What if I died today?I didn’t want to die like this. My mom needed me. I had so many things I wanted to do.I had things to say to Orion so I could officially close out this chapter in my life.

Sirens shrieked in the distance, and I prayed the police arrested Jasper. Something caught my eye from the window. I looked out and a dragonfly drone hovered by the windowpane, looking at me.

CHAPTER SIXTY-THREE

ORION

Remi,Royce, Grayson, Forrest, and Arrow each navigated their drones, helping me locate Elena.

I could see what they saw from my dashboard. My heart leaped with hope when I spotted a pile of dandelion flowers in the parking lot. It had to be Elena. I also saw drops of blood. Was she injured?

I parked my car and rushed toward the commotion. Police cars had arrived, and I rushed up to a group of officers.

I recognized one police officer I’d worked with. “Tim, where’s the gunman?”

“He’s dead.” He jerked his head toward the building. “But his body is still inside for CSI. They should be here soon.”

“I need to check on my girlfriend. Can you get me in the building?”

I entered through the back door and headed to the room where I’d seen her with Arrow’s drone. Based on the video, she was in a storage roomon this floor. My team had pulled blueprints for all the buildings on this street.

I knocked on the door. “Elena? It’s Orion.”

“I’m here!”

I yanked the door open, and she stood at the other end of the room. A storm of emotions stirred in me: joy, worry, regret, and so many others. I rushed over to her, gathering her into my arms. “Are you okay?”

“I think so. But my leg is bleeding a lot.” I glanced down and cursed at the huge stain. “Let me help you out.”

“It’s okay, I can walk.” She limped out of the door, using the wall to brace herself.

She had no idea how much her rejection hurt. But I’d deal with that later. Right now, I just wanted her safe.

I couldn’t stand seeing her limp down the hallway and scooped her into my arms. “Don’t be stubborn. I know you’re mad at me. Let’s get the injury taken care of, and then we can talk.”

CHAPTER SIXTY-FOUR

ELENA

It had beenthree weeks since the incident, and I’d been working nonstop from home. Orion wanted to talk, but I told him I needed a little more time.

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