Page 6 of Savage Throne
Hu and Duck followed.
Then TT stepped inside. “There’s a special knock.”
“A knock?”
“Yep.”
Of course, my father wouldn’t just leave a visible handle or latch—he’d make sure onlyhecould access the passage. It was another layer of control, of manipulation.
She pointed to the top of the wall. “I can’t reach it but right there in the corner. You have to knock up five times, really hard and really fast then after that you lower and knock three times hard with three seconds between each knock.”
I hurried in, raised my fist and did exactly as she told me. The sound echoed faintly in the closet.
I lowered and did the same thing. Once done, I rose.
“Step back,” TT said.
I did that too and stood still, waiting.
Hoping.
For a second, nothing happened.
There was a soft click, so quiet I almost didn’t hear it.
TT looked up and smiled. “Did you hear that?”
“Yeah.”
Slowly, the wall slid open, revealing a narrow dark passageway beyond. Cold air drifted out and the scent of dampness and earth hit me like a slap in the face.
My stomach twisted.
Moni had walked in this darkness with my father?
Duck sighed. “They had a fifteen minute head start, Lei. They’re gone.”
I turned to him. “Still, take some of our men down there and see if you can track them. If you see Moni, do whatever it takes to get her back.”
But even as I said those words, I couldn’t shake the feeling that we were already too late. My father had a plan and we were playing catch-up, as always.
I put my view on Hu. “If my father feels like he truly has Moni, then we can release Dima. Take some men to the carousel.”
“And what do we do with the monks at the carousel?”
I sneered. “Tell Dima he can have them.”
Hu blinked. “Lei. . .”
“The East handles the East but I’m too busy tonight. Let the North have their revenge on the monks for now.”
They shouldn’t have killed the cat.
Surely displeased, Hu shook his head and left.
Duck rushed to get more men.
I looked down at TT who had been watching me the whole time and I realized this wasn’t just about getting Moni back. I had to protect TT and her sisters too. They were all caught up in this mess.
