Page 20 of Conquering the Skies

The next corridor opened out into a grand ballroom. The man ran across the wide expanse of the dance floor, abruptly changing direction in the middle to head toward a recessed door in the opposite corner. Geneva was glad she had chosen to forgo formal shoes as her sneakers squeaked on the wooden floor and followed his route through the room.

A massive, multi-tiered cake stood on a table against one wall. A pit of dread formed in her stomach and her pulse raced faster as he sped past it. Though the bottom of the tablecloth fluttered as he whizzed by, the cake remained in place without suffering any damage. She adjusted her path to leave several feet between the lavish dessert display and the bulky pile of fabric she clutched, never relenting in her pursuit.

Another maze of corridors greeted her outside the ballroom, and she refused to let the employee escape her line of sight. A bead of sweat trickled down her neck into the top of her ornate bodice, but nothing diminished her determination as she continued the chase. Fewer obstacles stood in their path in this wing of the building; while he was able to maintain his quick speed, she matched his every step.

One lone door stood at the end of a short hallway, its markings designating it as an emergency exit. The man placed his palm on the handle yet hesitated. Breathing heavily, Geneva caught up to him, blocking the only other means of escape. “If you open that door, alarms are going to go off, and you’re going to attract a lot more attention than you already have,” she said.

His arm twitched against the door, but he didn’t respond.

“Plus, there are enough people who could identify you, so even if you somehow escaped from the building without being caught, it’s only a matter of time before the authorities find you.” She shook her head. “It’s over.”

His shoulders slumped. “I didn’t mean to—”

“Oh, spare me the sob stories. You almost ruined my friend’s wedding!” She stomped toward him, her hand outstretched. “The rings, please.”

As he dug around in his pocket, Ash and the supervisor rounded the corner. “Nathan!” the latter exclaimed. “I’m shocked! Appalled! Utterly dismayed!”

After passing Geneva the small velvet box, he shrank against the wall. “I’m sorry,” he squeaked out.

Chin raised, the supervisor sniffed. “You can consider your employment terminated.”

“That’s it?” Ash said. “Don’t you think this warrants more than a mere firing?”

“Well…” He tugged at his collar and cleared his throat. “Haven’t there already been enough delays? And surely, your friend wouldn’t want a police presence to spoil her special day. It’s not part of the elegant atmosphere we so carefully crafted for her.”

“You meanyoudon’t want the bad publicity,” he said.

His mouth tightened into a severe line as he glowered at them.

Geneva groaned. “Listen, one of the wedding guests is a detective with Triayda PD. I’m sure she can find a way to handle this discreetly…but you’re right. We don’t want to delay anything further.” Tapping her foot, she tried to determine a satisfactory course of action. “Okay, here’s what we’re going to do,” she said. “You’re going to find a nice, secure room for this Nathan gentleman to wait while the ceremony takes place. As soon as it’s done, I’ll fill in my detective friend with everything that’s happened and she’ll do what she needs to do. Fair?”

The supervisor swallowed. “You did say she would work discreetly, yes?”

She tapped her foot beneath her heavy skirt, fighting back her scorn. “As I’m not with the department, I can’t make any promises. But, like you pointed out, I’m sure she wouldn’t want anything to detract from what’s supposed to be a joyous occasion.”

“Fine,” he said, nodding.

“To be on the safe side, though, we’re going to take down your names and contact details in case one or both of you gets the dumb idea to try and escape again.” Geneva reached for her wrist out of habit then grimaced when she remembered she wasn’t wearing her communicator. Sighing, she turned to Ash. “Can you record the information for us? This dress has, like, a hundred layers, but not one of them has pockets.”

Chuckling, he activated the display of his own communicator. “You got it.”

Once the rings were in her possession and she was mostly convinced the supervisor would keep an eye on Nathan until the conclusion of the ceremony, Geneva trudged down the hallway with Ash at her side. “I hope I didn’t ruin my makeup,” she said. “Or mess up my hair. Do I look okay?”

“Perfect. No one would ever know you went for a quick pre-wedding run.” He squeezed her hand. “And you’re still fast as hell, despite the gigantic dress. I need to start hitting the gym with you again so I have a chance at keeping up.”

None of the distress had faded from Adele’s face in their absence, and her eyebrows shot up upon seeing them return. Geneva started to hand the rings over to Phoebe, but then thought better of it and delivered the box to Susannah. “Just a little hiccup in what’s going to otherwise be a spectacular day,” she said brightly.

Adele jiggled her bouquet up and down. “But what about—”

“Don’t worry about it.” She flicked her wrist in a dismissive gesture. “Everything will be taken care of.”

She exhaled, the tension in her arms deflating with the steady flow of air. “Thank you, Geneva.”

“Like I said, don’t worry about it.”

As her sisters re-fluffed her gown, one eyebrow arched again. “Are you…did I see you’re wearing sneakers underneath your dress?”

“Um…” A wave of heat rose to her cheeks. “You see, the skirt is so long and full and everything, I didn’t think anyone would notice.”

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