Page 62 of Blood Caged
“Control, we’re losing visual out here. What’s going on?”
The strain of coordinating with both Sabine and Jemma is intense. My temples throb as I try to keep our mental link stable.
“Jemma, status?”I project the thought, hoping she can hear me through the chaos.
“Bit of a glitch…”Her response is faint, strained. “They’re moving me…to medical…”
Shit!
I clench my jaw. Everything hinges on her joining us in the next couple of minutes. And on our guards leaving us unattended during that time.
Just as I’m about to give up hope of that happening, Jake’s radio crackles to life.
“Cell Block C. Now!”
He frowns at me, then down at the device. Sabine’s guard must have received a similar request because he’s heading our way.
“We’d better move it,” he says to Jake. “There’s a fire spreading through the block.”
“What about them?” Jake eyes me, then jerks his chin at Sabine, who’s taken a seat and seems to be utterly disinterested in what’s going on.
“Where they gonna go?” the other guy says. “The outer wall is fortified, and they can’t use their magic.”
Jake rubs the back of his neck, then looks at me. “Don’t try anything stupid, you hear me?”
“Wouldn’t dream of it,” I tell him.
I watch as the pair sprint in the direction of the doors, along with the sentry who’s posted there. I wait until the doors slam behind them, and their footsteps fade into the distance before galvanizing myself into action.
Sabine and I bolt for the wooded area that obscures the outer wall from sight. We get to the first row of trees and then stop as we reach each other. My chest is heaving, though not from theexertion; I’m so anxious that my heart feels like it’s going to beat right out of my chest.
“So far so good,” Sabine whispers, looking around us.
I nod. It almost seems too easy.
“Except Jemma’s stuck in medical.” I turn and focus on the door.
Come on. Come on!
When it finally swings open, I half-expect to see our guards coming back. But they don’t. Jemma’s hair streams behind her as she slips through the doorway and then sprints across the lawn toward us.
“You’ll never believe what happened,” she says in a rush as she reaches us. “They dragged me off to medical, and I thought I was going to be stuck there, but Dr. Chen helped me get away.”
“You’re kidding!” I gasp.
“Nope. She said she’s sick of this bullshit, and she’d let all of us go if she could figure out how to help us without the bloodsuckers killing her.”
“I wonder why she even works here.” I purse my lips.
“We’ll worry about that later, ladies.” Sabine is looking deeper into the trees. “We’re not out of the woods yet. And I mean that literally.”
With a grim nod, I stride forward, leading the way through the towering pines.
I push through the dense foliage, branches scratching at my arms as we forge ahead. The property stretches on endlessly, far larger than I’d imagined from our limited view in the garden. Sweat trickles down my back, and my lungs burn from the exertion.
“How much further?” Jemma pants behind me.
“It has to be close,” I reply, trying to mask my own uncertainty. We’ve been moving for what feels like an eternity, each steptaking us further from captivity but seemingly no closer to freedom.