Page 14 of Last Violent Call
They would surely be back before morning, with plenty of time to do some investigating while Yulun and Mila rested. Juliette didn’t fear for the two’s safety in their house: even if Mila wasn’t sleeping with Juliette’s sharpest knife under the pillow, Roma had pulled out a trip wire over the front and back entranceways, activating the emergency alarm system that he had installed a year ago when an unhappy client had tried targeting their supply. Movement along any of the wires would trigger the flares installed on the rooftop. If that didn’t scare the living daylights out of an intruder, nothing would.
“Is my neck warm enough for your liking?” Roma asked dryly. He barely flinched at the contact of Juliette’s ice-cold hands. It wasn’t as bad as her surprise attacks in the winter, when she would wrap her arms around his middle in the pretense of an embrace, only to plunge her cold hands up his shirt the moment he let his guard down.
“It is quite warm, yes.”
Roma reached up to remove her hands, tucking them together to preserve the warmth she had stolen. “You can have my neck later when we’re not committing crime.”
“Promise?”
“Have I ever broken a promise?” Before Juliette could say a thing, Roma spun her around, walking them forward. “No—don’t answer that. Rhetorical question.”
“I was about to start listing every occurrence.”
“That was the old me. I’m a changed man. No more broken promises or lies.”
Juliette snorted. “Did you not lie to me last week about how much that giant bouquet of flowers cost?”
“Thatwas for your own good, because you loved them.”
“They weretenyuan—” Juliette shut up suddenly, hearing a faintecho to her right. She grabbed Roma, shoving them behind a tree. “Shhh!”
A sudden gust of wind blew hard, the sound drowning out any ruckus they were making. The two of them rounded the tree, then pressed tightly against the trunk to put their bodies out of view. As the leaves overhead shook, Juliette leaned out, tracking the car that was driving by. Its headlights flared along the operating center. The wheels crunched against the road’s rough gravel before fading into the distance.
“What were you shushing me for?” Roma whispered after a few seconds. “You were the one talking.”
“I like telling you to shut up,” Juliette replied.
“Do you?”
“Absolutely.” Entirely straight-faced, she added, “It gets me all hot and bothered.”
Roma cleared his throat, trying very hard to look unamused by her teasing. No matter how inscrutable he kept his expression, Juliette always knew exactly when he was flustered, because he would clear his throat on a lower pitch, as if there were an itch at the base of his tongue.
“I saw a window that already looked broken.” Juliette hurried out from behind the tree, circling around the fence and immediately pressing close to the building. Their surroundings were vacant enough that it was unlikely anyone would spot them, but there was no harm in being cautious. “We can break off the panel and climb through.”
Roma was quick to follow in her footsteps. They found the broken window. “That may leave glass shards.”
“Not to fret.” Juliette reached forward to prod at the pane, trying to find the broken lines upon the glass. This had only caught her attention because someone had attempted to tape over the damage, making a largeXwith white paper tape that she easily peeled away. “It looks like astorage room inside. I will push the lower pane in. We can climb through easily. Then you can pin me down and—”
“Juliette,” Roma interrupted, scandalized.
“—I can check whether there is light under the door,” Juliette finished. She paused for effect. “What did you think I was going to say?”
“You—” Roma spluttered. “One does not need to bepinned downto check for light.”
“I disagree. It helps my focus when there’s physical pressure upon me. Don’t you want to ensure that the rest of the building is empty?”
Roma threw his arms up into the air. Arguing with Juliette when she was already being facetious was a lost cause.
“Get working on the window. You are going to be the death of me.”
Juliette grinned, taking out her switchblade. “I hope not. Benedikt will yell at me again. Cover your eyes.”
She turned the weapon around and thwacked the blunt end onto the corner of the glass. Half the pane popped loose at once, falling into the room. Carefully, she wrapped her bare fingers around the rest, pulling hard until there was a perfect rectangle hollowed out from the window.
“Give me a hand, my love.”
Roma was already taking his jacket off, laying it on the ledge to protect against the sharp bits and pieces that remained. Quick as she could, Juliette propped her knee onto the ledge and used his helpful push on her hips to climb through the window, landing in the storage room with a solid “oof!”
