Chapter 5 The Decision II

I held on the rope tightly as I descended, afraid of falling. I stretched my foot out cautiously, feeling for the next rung before I put my weight on it. My heart was pounding so hard against my ribs that I was afraid someone would hear it.

The air down here was thick, humid, and suffocating. It reeked of sweat, rust, and something else, metallic. Blood. I swallowed hard and forced myself to continue going down despite the awful scent. When my feet finally reached the floor, I pressed myself against the nearest wall, breathing heavily. A single, faint bulb flickered overhead, casting eerie shadows down the hall. Water dripped in slow, steady beats somewhere in the distance, breaking the silence. But the sound that ran my blood cold was the soft, steady breathing of the guard who was leaning against the doorway. He was asleep, his cap pulled down over his face more than halfway, his arms crossed, and his gun slack at his hip.

I could slip past him. If I was quiet enough.

Then I saw the cells.

They lined both sides of the corridor, filled with so many men. Men who were now shadows of themselves, their eyes sunken and full of misery and their bodies probably bruised and sore. Some rolled up on the cold stone floors, as if in an attempt to sleep, and others crouched in corners, looking into empty space. I couldn't let them see me. If they saw me as a stranger, which was a chance for escape, they'd cry out, shout, and then their noise would awaken the guard. I was not going to risk it.

I kept near the wall, my eyes scanning the room until it landed on something-a dark, thick cloak thrown over a coat rack near the guard. It was my only chance. I held my breath and crept forward. One step, slow. Another. The guard didn't move.

My fingers brushed against the cloak. I picked it up as well as the bunch of keys hanging on the rack too, and wrapped it around my shoulders, drawing the hood low over my face.

Disguised, I walked down the hall with fake confidence, my steps slow. My head was bowed, but my eyes slyly scanned the cells as I walked by, looking for Adrian. My heart was racing. The prisoners barely gave me any notice, too bothered with wallowing in their own misery to worry about a hooded figure walking by.

Then, near the last cell, I saw him.

He sat slumped, his blond hair mussed and his face pale, his head resting back against the stone wall.

Adrian.

My hands trembled as I felt for the keys. My fingers trembled, slickened with sweat. The metal jingled softly as I searched for the one that would fit the lock. I finally found it, and the lock clicked open.

The cell door creaked open slowly.

Adrian's head snapped up. His bloodshot eyes widened as they fell on me.

"Isla?" His voice was hoarse and suprised. He tried to sit up, swaying slightly. I moved to steady him, but his hand was quicker, clamping around my wrist.

"What the devil are you doing here?" His voice was harsh and demanding, his blue eyes scanning me from head to toe.

"I'm rescuing you," I whispered back. "We need to get out of here. Now.

He breathed heavily and ran a hand through his hair. "You shouldn't be here. You don't know what this man is capable of."

I inhaled deeply. "Oh, I think I do. He kidnapped me, told me I was going to be his wife, and held me in a bedroom."

Adrian tensed. "What?"

I swallowed, my throat tightening. "Dante Valenti. I know his name because I've heard stories about him back home," The name felt sour in my mouth. "He says my father owes him two hundred million dollars. And since my family can't pay, he's taking me instead."

Adrian stared at me as if I'd just told him the sky was green. His eyebrows furrowed, suspicion flitting across his face like he was trying to work out if this was some advanced-level joke his brain hadn't caught up with yet.

When I didn't start laughing, his face darkened, and his mouth compressed into a line.

"...Wait. You're not joking?"

"Why the hell would I be?!" I snapped rolling my eyes, my patience wearing thin.

He tightened his hold on my wrist. "Then we need to get you out of here. ASAP. I knew there was something wrong with this guy, but this-this-this is insane."

"Exactly," I said. "That's what I've been saying."

But then I mentioned running-of fleeing the country, changing our names, disappearing-and something in him shifted. The fire in his eyes left. His fingers ran cold against my skin.

And suddenly, it hit me.

The hesitation wasn't for me. It was for himself.

"He'll find us," Adrian said finally, his jaw clenching. "You don't understand. Dante has so many resources. So many connections. If we run, he'll hunt us down, and I-I don't want to risk it."

My chest tightened. "You mean you won't risk it."

Silence.

I'd always believed that if I ever needed Adrian, he'd be there. That no matter what, we'd go through it together. He was my best friend. My for-lifer. But now, when I was ready to throw everything away-Brown, my future, my safety-for him, he wasn't going to do the same for me.

The realization stung me. But I didn't let anything show on my face.

Without a word, I stepped aside and opened the door. "Go."

He hesitated. For a split second.

Then, he sprinted past me.

And just like that, he was gone.

I turned to follow after him, but no sooner had I been about to step out when a calloused hand came down on my shoulder. I barely had time to react before I had been spun around and slammed into the bars. Pain exploded in my ribs, sending the air out of my chest.

A low menacing voice snarled in my ear.

"Where do you think you're going, princess?"

I fought, kicked, struggled...but he was stronger. His arms tightened as he dragged me backward, my heels scraping on the stone. My vision blurred. A whistle cut through the corridor. Footsteps. More men. I was lifted off the ground.

And as the darkness begun to take over my vision, only one thought still remained i n my head.

Adrian got away.

And I didn't.