Zeno: #8 (Luna Lodge) (5 page)

He took in a deep breath. A hauntingly familiar scent drifted into his nose. Ava was close. He looked up to find the window was much higher than he had expected. The house had been carved into the side of a large hill, which afforded the occupants the best view money could buy. However, it also meant that what was the ground floor in front was the second floor in the back.

Zeno grumbled to himself. Seemed like everything was always harder than it needed to be. Still, he needed to get Ava away from Antonio. He bit back a growl, remembering the man’s aggression.

He jumped and gripped the ledge with his fingers. Pulling himself up, he looked into the window. Pink, pink, and more pink. He assumed that was Ava’s room. Whether it was to her taste or Antonio’s perception of her taste didn’t matter. All that mattered was that he’d located her.

He breathed in deeply. Ava’s sweet and somewhat spicy scent filled his nostrils, along with a strong hint of vanilla. Familiar, desirable. She called to him, like he’d known her all his life.

He scanned the room, but it seemed to be empty. He started to lower himself when he caught sight of movement just to the right of him. He watched as a slim bare foot disappeared into an old open vent.

A light brown sun-streaked head peeked out from the vent. He watched as Ava sealed herself into the vent.

He frowned. Just what they hell was that woman up to?

Zeno leaned back and glanced to the side, tracing her likely path. Another window ledge presented itself.

He swung over and gripped the ledge. With ease he lifted the window and slipped into the dark room. Even in the dim light, his keen hybrid eyesight informed him he was in some sort of office.

The grate to the vent quietly slipped off. Ava made her way out. The red satin evening dress she wore clung to her like a glove, and he felt his pants tighten.

His face heated as he struggled to get his lust under control. How was he supposed to rescue her with a raging hard-on? Let alone talk to her?

He pressed himself back into the shadows as she moved over to the desk. She struggled with one of the drawers before it popped open. She grunted in frustration as she shut the drawer and moved on to the next. Whatever it was she was looking for was in those drawers, and with the noise she was making, they’d be discovered before they even had a chance to escape.

Footsteps down the hall sounded. His pulse ripped through him.

In an instant he was on her, his hand over her delicate mouth.

Zeno pulled her hard against his body and pushed them to the far side of the room, away from the light of the door. Ava picked up her arm. The gleam of the moon caught the letter opener she held tightly.

He looked down to her and shook his head. He could only hope she’d see his signal and understand. The lock clicked, and he waited. At the first sign things weren’t right, he was going to just toss her over his shoulder and run like hell.

The door opened a crack. He tensed and pressed her even closer to the wall. A short burst of air puffed against his chest as they both tried to remain perfectly still. Zeno was ready to fight if he had to, but he only hoped that he didn’t have to. Drawing too much attention would not only put himself and Ava at risk, it might also endanger the signal tracing mission.

The door clicked closed, and he relaxed a little. He could feel her slim body sag against his.

“Do you think he’ll come back?” she whispered.

He looked down at her. The moon reflected off her bright green eyes, and he lost himself for a moment. So close to her now, touching, her warm vanilla scent washed over him, consumed him.

He finally understood why her scent pushed into his mind and heart. Her presence called to him, pulled the primal part of him that told him she was not just a Vestal, but his Vestal. She was meant to be his bonded.

His body grew hot at the thought. Zeno could have what he’d seen so many others around him have: a chance at happiness.

For a moment it seemed like a possibility before the reality of the situation came crashing down on him. He was there on a mission and already she was proving to be a distraction. If he didn’t keep his focus, he’d get them both killed.

He pushed away from the wall, the cold air around him a welcome reprieve from the heat washing through him.

“Yeah, he might come back,” he said, finally able to find his voice.

Ava sprang into action. She didn’t have time to think about anything other than getting her papers and getting the hell out of there.

She raced over to the last drawer and jimmied the lock open.

“What the hell are you doing?” Zeno said and made his way over to her.

She ignored the large man and the thump of her heart as he spoke.

She pulled out the papers and spread them on the desk. She was surprised to find a stack of cash, both US dollars and Peruvian sols. This had to be the right drawer.

“We don’t have time for you to steal money,” he whispered. “You need to move it if you want my help.”

Ava frowned. “I never asked for your help.” She glared at him. “In fact, I was doing just fine without you.”

Zeno snorted. “Could have fooled me.”

She gritted her teeth. Giant oaf. What? Did he think that girls couldn’t do things for themselves? She was done getting stepped on by men with big egos.

“Funny how I made it here just fine without you,” she said and swept everything into her bag. There was no way she’d be able to see which one was her passport. Besides, if it was important, it might be prudent of her to have something to offer in a bargain.

She zipped the bag up quickly and slung it on her back. Ava palmed the letter opener. It wouldn’t be that useful if the other person had a gun, but it was better than nothing.

Zeno went still, and she looked up to him. The moon provided a little light, but it wasn’t enough for her to really see him like she wanted. He held out a hand and she froze in place.

Footsteps pounded down the hall, and her heart beat in time to them. The sound of her bedroom door squeaking open echoed in the hall.

“Where the fuck is she?” Antonio shouted in the hall.

She swallowed hard. He really had planned to come to her.

Another man burst into rapid Spanish. She couldn’t make out what he’d said, but she was pretty sure he was stretching to find whatever he had to so he didn’t end up shot.

“She can’t be far,” Antonio ground out. “Just find her!”

The footsteps came back into the hall, and for a moment she was certain he was going to come into the office. Instead he turned the other direction. She let out a sigh.

She nearly yelped when a firm hand landed on her arm and pulled her over to the window. Several men with flashlights stalked the grounds.

“Fuck,” Zeno muttered.

That pretty much summed up her thoughts as well.

He turned back around and paced.

“We don’t have a choice,” he said finally. “We’ll have to take the risk and go through the house.”

Her heart slammed into her chest. Did they really need to do that? Couldn’t they just wait?

She knew it was crazy though. If they didn’t move, Antonio would eventually come into his office, and they would be sitting ducks. He might shoot them both on sight. That might be merciful compared to what else he had planned.

Zeno moved to the door and carefully turned the knob. It was quiet, and she wondered if they had sent everyone outside to look for her.

They slipped into the hall with ease. She glanced down the hall where Antonio had moved. Maybe he had joined the men to search for her.

“What’s down there?” Zeno said.

She shook her head. “His room and a separate entrance to the back patio.”

A small shiver passed through her at the thought of Antonio. Zeno nodded in the opposite direction.

“Let’s get out of here,” he whispered.

They hurried through the hall. When they reached the door to the dining room, she placed a hand on Zeno’s solid arm to stop him.

“There are usually guards,” she said.

He furrowed his brow. “Is this the way to the front?”

She nodded. There were three doors from the dining room, one to the hall they were currently in, one to the kitchen and one to the front living space that led outside. It wasn’t an area she was all that familiar with, but she was sure she could find her way.

Zeno pulled a gun from behind him.

“Stay behind me,” he said, his eyes meeting hers. For the first time, she realized he wasn’t wearing sunglasses like earlier. She blinked. His eyes were a deep amber. The strange color jogged her memory, as if it meant something she’d heard recently.

She opened her mouth to say something but stopped when he pushed open the door.

They slipped into the room. She pointed to the door on the right, and Zeno walked across the room to place his ear against the wood.

He listened for a moment and shook his head.

Without a word, he pushed her over to the other door and made his way into the kitchen. He slowly closed the door behind them to avoid any rustle or squeak.

They moved further down the hall that led to the kitchen and further away from the approaching men.

When they had reached the main kitchen, Ava looked around. The quiet room had just earlier been filled with people. Now it was silent.

“Outside door,” Zeno said and pointed to the door in the corner.

They headed that way but stopped when light flashed through the windows.

Zeno cursed under his breath as they dropped to the floor.

He looked over to the doorway they had entered from, and she knew the men must be close behind.

“There are two more doors,” she whispered.

The two doors were in an alcove of the kitchen close to the sinks.

They moved quickly to the doors. The first Zeno opened to reveal a pantry. The second door was a little different. There was a large metal bar over it that first had to be removed before he could even check. Inside there were steep stairs leading to the basement.

“Let’s go,” he said and pulled her arm a little.

Ava took a shaky breath and stepped behind him. Closing the door as quietly as she could, she followed him into the darkness.

Chapter Seven

The damp air clung to them as they sank lower into the bowels of the house.

Zeno could feel Ava’s hand at his back, gripping his shirt as if it were the only thing keeping her safe.

The footfalls of men sounded above them, along with the occasional exchange of words. The enemy was close, very close.

Ava and Zeno had managed to slip out before anyone had noticed. He only hoped that the guards didn’t notice the latch on the door was now left open. Or better yet, that Zeno and Ava would make their way out of the house before anything else happened.

Strange scratching sounds echoed off the walls when they reached the bottom of the stairs. He ignored them for the moment, probably just some rats or whatever else they had in the middle of a Peruvian mountain town. Hell if he knew.

Ava hissed, and he turned to look at her. His eyes had already adjusted, his superior hybrid vision making the inky darkness a mere inconvenience for him. The same could not be said for her considering how uncertain her movements had been. She was holding her bare foot.

“I’ve cut myself on a piece of glass or something,” she whispered.

He frowned. It was the first time he realized an evening dress didn’t exactly make for the best escape wear.

“Do you have anything you can put on?” he asked.

She shook her head. “Antonio was very specific about what I wore,” she said, bitterness lacing her voice. “I left the heels because I knew they would make too much noise.”

Anger pierced through him. If he ever met that prick in a dark alley, he’d be sure to show him just what he thought of him.

They didn’t have time to find some miracle hiking boots for her. Zeno stooped down and pulled out a bandana he kept in his pocket and gently wrapped the foot. The cut was deep enough that blood quickly soaked through the cloth.

“I need to tighten it,” he said quietly and looked up from his position. “This is going to hurt.”

She nodded as she looked down at him and for a moment, he wondered if she could see him in the darkness. He doubted it. It was likely she was just going off reflexes.

Zeno moved the two ends of the bandana to the top of her foot and pulled tightly. Her hand found his shoulder and gripped him tightly.

He passed his thumb over her foot a few times in what he hoped was comfort.

Ava placed her foot gingerly on the bottom step. Her breathing picked up.

He stood and sighed. There really wasn’t much choice. There was only one way they were going to get out of there.

Zeno slipped her bag off her shoulders and slung it on his back. Then he lifted her slight body with ease into his arms.

She gasped. “What are you doing?”

He grunted and stepped away from the stair with her in his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck, her fingers playing at the base of his head. He could feel the cold metal of the letter opener she gripped.

“Getting us out of here,” he said gruffly.

Her smell surrounded him, a sweet smell of vanilla and spice that made him want to press his face against her neck and inhale.

“Can you use a gun?” he asked, shaking himself from his desire. If he couldn’t control himself, she would know what he was before he could explain.

She shook her head. “No.”

He grunted his annoyance. They were about to go walking in a house swarming with many armed men, and he couldn’t even use his gun to defend them. Yeah, this was a great idea.

“How can you even see?” she asked when he took a step forward to view the area they were in. “I can’t see an inch in front of my face down here.”

“Night vision,” he said simply.

The room presented an odd layout, not like any basement he’d ever seen. It was cement mostly. Some sort of chamber surrounded the stairs. Chains connected to the wall and bolted down chairs lay scattered about. Maybe this room was where Antonio took people he wanted to deal with. It made sense.