Page 128 of Resolve
“This better work.” Dane scrubs his hand through his hair, nerves making him agitated. “How much time do we have?”
“Not long, I’m afraid.” Charles’s voice echoes from the second floor. He’s standing at the railing between the two staircases. “I wondered what was taking you so long to find me, but it appears you’re waiting for something.” He lifts his hand. “Let me ruin that plan.”
Aiden swings his whip sword. It slashes through the railing where he stands, and Charles is forced to teleport. “Run!”
Dane and I dash down a hallway with Aiden covering us. Charles appears in our way with a laugh. I shove Dane to turn down the hallway to the left. This building is a maze with hallways and rooms galore. It’s easy to get lost in it if we don’t pay attention.
Something yanks us back off our feet. It’s like a magnet drawing us in, and I remember how Charles had done that just before striking with a blast that hit every inch of our bodies at once. Reaching formy gift, I send an uncontrolled burst through the ceiling.
It’s nothing but drywall and plumbing. There’s nothing heavy as I’d hoped for to hit Charles with as it cracks and falls apart, but burst pipes flood the hallway. He drops us without the attack, and once again, we’re rushing to our feet in the growing puddles.
“I can’t help but notice you’re more focused on running away than fighting. What are you waiting for?”
He shows up in front of us again. I drag Dane to a stop, switching directions as fast as possible on wet tile flooring without slipping. Dane does exactly that, his shoes squealing from the fast spin, but Aiden’s right there to catch his other side and help me bring us back to the last hallway we’d passed.
Aiden doesn’t know how to get to the right room, and I think Dane’s already messed up the directions because he’s missed opportunities where we could have turned.
We made sure to walk every hall before picking a room, so we knew how to get here. No matter which hallway we take, I can get us there.
The only question is, if we head there now, is it too soon? We only get one chance.
We’re coming up to the room.
Do I take it, or keep running us in circles for more time?
I grasp the doorknob.
And I’m thrown backward, crashing into another door and room. Dane and Aiden run in after me. Charles blocks the door and only exit in the room.
“I think I understand now. You were trying to lead me to that room there, weren’t you?” He uses his gift to block the doorway with all the furniture in the room. “You shouldn’t have been soobvious by not fighting.” He smiles, confidence dripping from him, while he looks down on us as if he’s won.
“You okay?” Dane asks me, helping me to my feet.
“Yeah. Hurry,” I urge, keeping my voice low for only him.
Aiden’s dark stare is focused on Charles, who stands between me and him. I move up to his side, and he places his arm across me to keep me from getting any closer to Charles.
“You’re still children playing checkers when I’ve been playing chess all along,” Charles continues, enjoying his boasting. He’s so self-assured that he’s won.
It’ll feel great to bring him down a peg or two.
“That’s funny,” I call back, and his attention zeroes on me. Good. Dane’s already moved behind Aiden and toward the wall. “Aiden said something similar about you.”
Charles’s brows shoot to his forehead. “Oh?” His blue eyes slide to Aiden. “And how is tha—”
A sharp beep followed by four shorter beeps interrupts him.
Dane smirks from where he’s crouched beside the device controller along the wall.
While Charles is busy looking at Dane, Kellan leaps out of thin air with a gift-blocking cuff. Charles sees him and knocks him back with his gift.
Click.
Jackson secures the second gift-blocking cuff around Charles’s wrist and then stabs him in the neck. Blood sprays. Charles grabs at his neck, his eyes wide as he stumbles back. He chokes, blood dribbling from his mouth.
I’m barely breathing.
Somehow, it all worked.
