Page 92 of The Hate We Breathe
“The stalker isn’t expecting her to go with us,” Nolan replies to Gio’s argument.
Gio snorts at that. “So, you think that Madison just calls her and needs her just as we’re getting ready to go meet them?” he demands, the caustic lilt to his words sharp and antagonizing.
Nolan shakes his head, his hand falling away from my arm as he turns to Gio. Before he can speak, Lex opens his mouth.
“She won’t go alone regardless,” he says. “I’ll go with her.”
All at once, every one of our gazes is on him. Gio frowns but doesn’t respond as he glances from Lex to Nolan.
“Fine,” I say. “I don’t care who comes with me, but we need to go now.”
“And the meeting?” Gio asks, arching a brow as he crosses his arms over his chest. The muscle beneath the fabric of his suit coat pulls the material tight, making him seem larger and more imposing—as if he’s ready to murder the motherfucker that’s been ruining my life here and now.
“We still need to go in case it’s not related to Madison,” Nolan states. “None of us should be alone, though. So, Lex, you take Juliet up to the roof. Find Madison, bring her down here. G and I will check out the meeting location. I’ll text you when we’re there and if no one shows, I’ll call.”
“We need to inform Viks of the change in plans,” Gio says, dropping his arms once more, and he reaches into his pocket and withdraws his cell.
“You take care of that and we’ll let you know if anything happens when we get to the roof,” Lex replies, but Gio is already pressing numbers on the phone and putting it to his ear.
Relief hits me like a freight train as we finally move for the exit. Lex takes my hand and plucks my cell from it, stuffing it in his pocket as we head back out into the ballroom where the formal is being held. The second the door opens, the music blasts inside—the sound nearly deafening after the brief moment of semi-quiet.
My steps are far more hurried than before as I make my way around the dance floor and towards the open doors leading back towards the lobby. Lex’s long legs eat up the distance as he easily keeps pace with me. We head out of the ballroom, leaving behind the music and half-drunken students as we make our way to the elevators we’d bypassed in the lobby.
I thought I’d feel better once we were on our way, but I don’t. My heart pounds a consistent beat against my rib cage as sweat collects on the back of my neck.
Lex draws me closer as the elevator doors slide open with a hiss. It’s empty and I’m thankful as we step inside and he hits the button to take us to the highest floor.
“What if he kills her?” The question blurts out of my mouth unbidden, my fears brought to audible life.
“Come here, baby,” Lex murmurs, his arms sliding around my waist as he anchors me against him, his back to my chest. I watch the numbers that light up above the elevator door as they climb higher and higher.
A low hum of panic seizes me, clinging to every nerve ending. A million and one what-if scenarios race through my head. What if she’s in danger? What if she dies? What if wearewalking into a trap like Gio suggested?
“Juliet.” I turn my head up as Lex says my name. Stormy eyes bore into me when our gazes clash. “You know I’d never let anything happen to you, right?”
I nod. Any other time, those words might be comforting enough to ease the dread and anxiety swarming my mind. But it’s not me I’m worried about.
His palm cups the side of my face. “I love you, baby. No matter what happens, I’ve got you.” The words are a heated whisper and just as he bends his head to press his lips to mine, the elevator dings and the doors slide open once more.
Neither of us says a word as we pull apart and exit the elevator without the kiss, though disappointment and that heady sense of apprehension still linger. Since there was no button on the elevator to lead to the roof, there must be another way up.
I scan the wall, searching for a plaque or sign and find one several feet down from the elevator that reads ‘stairs’ and points down to a series of doors. Lex is a quiet shadow at my back as he follows me dutifully. We march down the hallway of doors, my eyes moving back and forth until we come to a door thatlooks thicker than the others with a second gold plaque next to it reading ‘stairs’ again.
“Wait!” Lex’s bark halts me as my hands press against the bar across the middle of the door. He reaches behind himself and withdraws a gun from the small of his back. It’s a dark hand-sized piece, and I watch as he deftly checks the clip and safety before holding it loosely in his right hand and reaching for the door with his left. He gently nudges me out of the way as he pushes against the bar—taking the first step into the cold stairwell.
A beat later, he motions for me to follow, and I do. The heavy door closes behind us with a resounding clang that echoes up and down the empty space. White stone walls line either side of us and a metal railing with chipped paint makes the cold air seem all the more foreboding. A short flight leads up to another door with a tarnished metal square to the side that isn’t nearly as well-kept as the one in the hotel hallway. It reads ‘roof entrance 2’.
My pulse jumps, exploding in my ears like a pair of drums. Lex shifts beside me, his presence a wall of heat and carefully restrained violence. He’s quiet, but I can see the tension coiled in his body like a spring. He moves up the stairs, step by step until he reaches the door, then he pauses and glances over his shoulder. It’s clear he wants me to let him go first. I grit my teeth and nod my head.
One second passes. Two… the moment the third second hits—he shoves his hand against the bar of the door leading onto the roof and lifts his gun. I follow him, racing up the stairs with my hand on the railing for support in these fucking heels.
Cold night air slams into us, thick with the scent of ice and asphalt. It’s not snowing, but it smells like more is coming.
Lex’s back is to me as he turns left and then right, the barrel of his gun up and ready as he scans the area. I step through thedoor and do the same—sans gun. My brow puckers. There’s no one here.
A shiver overtakes me and the door behind me swings closed with a loud thud. “Mads?” I call out, moving forward as gooseflesh rises along my arms. The roof is a sprawl of shadows, neon light bleeding from the city below. My breath fogs in front of me.
Lex lowers his gun and glances back at me. “Are you sure she said she was?—”
