Page 74 of Who Said Mobsters Were Scary?
“Okay. I have a crazy idea,” Leo announces. He’s still standing in the corridor, holding the door open as he observes the intersection where we came from.
“I’m all ears.”
His impish grin hints it’s going to be something questionable. “Well…” He retrieves his gun and uses it to smack the emergency sign above the door. It shatters, glass scattering on the floor. “We go up. They’d expect us to go down, looking for a way out, right? So we go up, wait until the floor is clear, and run back the way we came.”
I consider that as he closes the door and joins me by the railing. It could work, but there are two glaring issues with what he is suggesting.
“What makes you think they won’t split, sending people up as well?” And two, “Or they won’t leave someone here by the door?”
“It crossed my mind. But the thing is that if they do, it makes their numbers easier to manage.”
As reckless as this sounds, it could work. Goro is likely to send the majority downstairs because that makes the most sense. And any extra men would be waiting at the emergency exit if it does exist.
Voices coming from the corridor on the other side of the door tell me we must decide what to do fast. Seeing as we are trapped with no help coming, we can’t count on anyone but ourselves.
“It’s going to work, trust me. We got this. We just need to dwindle down their numbers a bit,” Leo says with conviction.
He’s worried and he’s scared shitless, but he’s also excited. His eyes are burning with a wild spark, determined and willing to do whatever it takes to get us out of here.
It’s infectious. Hypnotizing. Elating.
Leo and I are together in this. We are a team. He’s not my bodyguard right now, he’s my partner. He’s got my back, and I got his.
I yank him to me, smacking a kiss on his lips. It’s fast and dirty, but enough so his intoxicating taste floods me. “Okay. But if this doesn’t work, you’re fired and I’m canceling your visa arrangements.”
“If this doesn’t work, getting fired and deported would be the least of my problems. I’m pretty sure Goro only wants you alive.”
We run up the stairs, hiding in the corridor two floors up. “Too bad. We are a package deal.”
He bites his bottom lip, flashing me one of those disarmingly sexy smiles that’s more than a little inappropriate given our current circumstances. “Oh, yeah? We are, aren’t we, boyfriend? I gotta say though, I’m concerned about breaking the news to your dad.”
How can he think aboutthatwhen there’s no guarantee we’ll even make it out of here alive?
I open my mouth to point that out, but he lifts two fingers, halting my words. His goofy expression changes to that tantalizing single-minded focus as his entire body tenses up and prepares for action, his attention no longer on me. I take a deep breath and heighten my senses, zeroing in on the faint noise coming from the stairwell.
Then I wait, crouched down by the door just like him.
Minutes pass and at one point I lose track of time, until Leo’s eyes cut to mine as he gives me a hand-gesture to get ready. I barely get to nod before the door opens and four men walk into the corridor. Leo charges at them, toppling over the two closest to him. I follow suit, grabbing the gun from the one nearest to me and punching the one next to him in the head with its butt. He crumples to the floor like a dead weight. I consider shooting the remaining guys, but that will only alert the rest to our whereabouts, so instead I swing at the closest, aiming for his face.
He blocks with an elbow, kicking my legs. I lose my footing as I watch Leo connect a nasty uppercut to one of his opponents. He ducks down to avoid a punch to the neck, sliding across the linoleum as he grabs the guy’s arm and forces him down, too. He notices me as I brace for an incoming hit in the stomach, my attempt to trip the guy hovering above me thwarted by a well-timed jump.
“Hey, asshole, watch out!” Leo yells, pulling my attacker’s attention away from me.
That’s all the opening I need. Kicking out with my left leg, I get him this time, his distraction allowing me to target his ankle. He cries out in pain as his knee bucks. Bracing my hands on the floor, I propel myself at him, knocking him down. He manages to dodge my first punch,but I get him in the nose with the second. He groans in pain and jabs me in the flank, his legs trashing and trying to get purchase. I straddle him and squeeze my thighs firmly, limiting his movements. He claws at my legs with one hand, and somehow rolls us over, trying to find an opening while he keeps punching my side. I grit my teeth and grab his hand, twisting his arm as best as I can.
He curses, his entire body spasming. Taking advantage, I roll us until I am on top of him again and wrap my hands around his neck, squeezing as hard as I can. He’s out ten seconds later.
“You good?” Leo offers me his hand, panting and heaving as blood drips down his newly cracked lip. It’s the same side as the one that got busted in the Arena match.
I let him help me up and then I glance at the men he’s left lying around on the floor, realizing there is a third one I didn’t even notice.
“Please tell me they didn’t get your face,” Leo says half-laughing, his voice frantic. “Your dad will kill me if he finds out I let you fight instead of sit in a corner with a bucket of popcorn while I channel my inner Rambo.”
I arch an eyebrow at him, picking up one of the guns. Good. It has ammo. “Do you even know who Rambo is?”
Leo wrinkles his nose, snatching two more guns. They are loaded, too. “Everyone knows who Rambo is.”
We slip into the stairwell, keeping to the wall. I can hear voices from below and when I look over the railing, beams of light dance left and right as men make their way down. The landing we are after looks clear.
