Page 15 of The Grandmaster's Pawn (Checkmate)

Nothing I can say in this moment will make up for using her, and we have only minutes before Tatiana’s plan is set into motion.

“We have to be quick, luv,” I say as I scoop her into my arms and she buries her face against my neck. “When we get outside, can you run?” Setting her down on a short stack of pallets next to the window, I pull a tube from my bag.

“I…I don’t know.” Trembling fingers rub at her knee, and the look on her face…it shatters me that I put it there.

“How badly are you hurt?” The Lady slides from the tube, and I unfurl her in all her glory as Gemma gasps and betrayal wells in her pale green eyes. “You had it. The painting. He was right. You stole it from him.”

“I’ve stolen a lot of things. But not anymore.” Laying the painting out on the table, I shake my head. “Never again. And the Ladyneverbelonged to Ulrich.”

This time, when I pull Gemma into my arms, she’s stiff, but we can argue later. Now, we only have five minutes to get the fuck out of here.

Before I can lift her up so she can scramble out the window, a door slams, and Gemma screams.

“Turn around, Daniel.” A knife pierces my wool sweater, the tip of the blade digging into my skin too close to my spine. “Your luck has finally run out.”

Gemma

Daniel’s entire body goes rigid, and he turns slowly with me still held in his arms. The look on Ulrich’s face...it’s pure glee, and the tip of his knife holds a smear of Daniel’s blood.

“Ulrich. You have your Lady back. I am taking mine.”

If I weren’t so scared, I’d probably rail at being called Daniel’s lady. After all, he lied to me. About…everything. But he also came for me. Not that we’re likely to get out of here now.

Setting me down carefully, he steps in front of me. My knee sends shooting pains up my leg, and I grab onto Daniel’s waist to keep myself upright. It’s dark outside. It was dark when Ulrich took me. I’ve been here a full day. No food, barely any water. I’m dizzy and terrified.

“You’ll do no such thing.” Ulrich gestures with the knife as he backs away from the crates we’re standing on. “Get down and perhaps I’ll kill Miss Watson quickly. You won’t have to watch her suffer.”

Daniel meets my gaze over his shoulder. Fear churns in the depths of his green eyes as he looks towards the open window. It’s still a full three feet over my head. There’s no way I can climb up there. Not in my current state.

I shake my head, tears welling in my eyes. With a hard swallow, Daniel jumps down, takes me by the waist, and sets me behind him again. ”Belt,” he mouths before turning back to Ulrich. “What now? Shall I dance a jig? Or do you prefer impressions? Charades?”

Ulrich slams the hilt of the knife into Daniel’s jaw, and he stumbles back, crashing into me and knocking me against the crates. But I feel it. The hard bulge tucked in his waistband.

“You will not be joking for long,” Ulrich snaps. “Soon, you’ll be nothing more than a stain on the sole of my shoe.”

My fingers curl around a molded handle, and I pull a stun gun from Daniel’s belt as he takes his time getting to his feet. Quickly, I tuck it into the pocket of my flannel sleep pants.

“Bugger,” Daniel says after spitting blood onto the concrete floor. “As if you have any right to judge me. You have at least six lives on your ledger. For all my faults, I’ve never killed anyone.”

“Let’s make it an even eight,” Ulrich says. He springs forward, and Daniel sidesteps him, grabbing his arm and sending him reeling into the wall.

Matthias advances on me, his blade glinting in the dim overhead bulb. Cowering against the box we were just standing on, I beg, “Please, don’t.”

“Been waiting for this,” he says with a grin. I turn to the side like I’m bracing for a blow, and yank the stun gun from my pocket. As the thug advances on me, I thrust the weapon against his groin and squeeze the trigger. A loud clicking noise startles me, and I almost lose my grip, but Matthias falls over with a high-pitched scream, his arms and legs twitching.

Daniel grunts, and I look over to see him pinned under Ulrich, both hands wrapped around Ulrich’s wrist, trying to keep the knife from sinking into his chest.

“Get off of him, asshole!” Diving forward, I jam the stun gun into Ulrich’s calf—the only part of him I can reach—and squeeze again. But the damn thing isn’t fully recharged, and he doesn’t go down, just kicks his leg out and catches me in the shoulder.

The weapon goes flying, and I land flat on my back. But the momentary distraction is enough for Daniel. He knees Ulrich in the groin, and the big man screams like a baby.

It’s over in seconds. Daniel pinches a spot on Ulrich’s neck, then another under his arm, and the man sinks to the ground with a moan and passes out. Matthias, who’s still twitching and whimpering like a baby gets the same treatment.

Digging into his bag, Daniel pulls out a thick envelope and drops it on a table in the corner. With a final pat to Ulrich’s jacket pocket, he straightens and turns to me. Sirens blare in the distance. “We have to get out of here, Gemma. Right bloody now.”

The wail of the police car gets louder as Daniel helps me to my feet and lifts me onto the box. “Out the window, luv. I’m right behind you.” Rolling out onto the weeds, I suck in fresh air as the rain starts to fall.

Daniel climbs out after me, then scoops me into his arms and takes off at a jog down the street. “You’re safe now. I promise. No one will ever hurt you again.”

---