Page 69 of Liar
The black handle gives under both my hands. I don’t celebrate, immediately spinning it until there’s a wide enough crack for me to slip through right as a flash of red enters my periphery.
I can only go by memory when I swing a leg over the ledge, the icy stone sinking through my uniform with chilling speed.
Savannah’s gaze leaps around the room before landing on me. Her eyes widen at the same time mine do.
She dives forward.
I scurry all the way out of the bay window, skirting the edge and thanking the founders for their dedicated detail in the stonework.
A gargoyle’s on my left, sitting on a column etched into the house. I step on his head, dig my fingers into the old stone, and climb.
Savannah’s manicured hand sweeps out, clawing for my ankle. I kick at it as she blindly tries to grab on.
She could climb out after me. I keep that in mind as I scale Weatherby Manor, my fingers already stiffening with cold. Savannah’s head pops out next.
She finds me, her gaze drifting up as she tracks where I’m going, and smiles. “What are you doing out here, Ember? Are you going to the roof to wait for your helicopter?” She laughs.
I ignore her, turning my face forward and finding purchase to move up and away from her.
“Sorry to say, this isn’t a Bond film,” she continues.
I grunt, “I don’t care where I end up, as long as it’s away from you.”
“Why are you running?” she asks. “You could just stay and talk.”
“We’ve done enough talking, don’t you think?”
I take some hard breaths, amping myself up to take my foot off the gargoyle’s head and position myself even farther away from the ground. My aim is to jump to the domed turret on top of the windows I’d just climbed out of. If I can do that, I can shuffle over to the main roof and get as far away from Savannah as possible.
I can do this. My fingers turn into claws. One of my nails breaks on the chipped stone.
“What makes you think we’re here to hurt you?” Savannah’s voice changes to a calm, placating tone. “Damion and I only want to sort through Malcolm’s and your plan to hurt us.”
“There is no plan,” I lie, then take the leap.
My right hand grips where I intended on the tower’s cornice. My left slips on a clump of snow I didn’t initially see. Yelping, I dangle one-handed before I swing my left arm up and grip the cornice hard. My shoe tips squeal against the windowpane as I frantically attempt to climb up.
“I trusted you, Ember. You were supposed to be my secret friend.”
Savannah has the perfect opportunity to grab my ankle and send me plummeting to the frozen ground below. For reasons I’ve yet to figure out, she doesn’t.
“Ember, don’t be stupid. Come back in here.”
Even if I wanted to… I stare down wryly, then back up to the roof. I’m pretty fucking stuck both ways. My hands start to shake, and despite the freezing weather, sweat prickles against my hairline.
I use my elbows to get a small side-to-side going, hoping to swing myself to the angled part of the roof. On the third swing, my right foot scrapes against the slate, then slides off. Dammit.
“You’ll kill yourself out there, and for what?” Savannah perches her elbows on the window ledge, resting her head in her hands as she watches me. “All Damion and I want to do is ensure your silence. Not by murdering you, obviously, but your father’s admitted some concerning things. You need to prove you’re on our side—on the Virtues’ side. Where’s your loyalty, Ember? I don’t think you’ll find it between that gargoyle’s ears.”
My finger joints are screaming. I can’t hold on for much longer.
“And how was I supposed to prove my loyalty? By watching Damion kill Malcolm and then giving a thumbs-up afterward?”
“Hm.” Savannah pretends to think that over. “It was a possibility until Malcolm offered Damion his business in exchange for not harming you.”
“What?” I stare past my struggling arm at Savannah.
Savannah sighs, her exhale coming out as a white puff of air. “Can you stop your gymnastics, please, and come back inside? Let’s chat over coffee or something. It’s fucking cold out here.”