Page 53 of Hide And Seek

13

The administration buildingstood on the southwest side of camp, a little removed from everything else. Two stories, wood-paneled, with a wide front porch and a set of dark windows that reflected almost nothing back at us.

Beside me, Rhys adjusted his grip on the ax slung over his shoulder. It wasn’t one of the smaller throwing axes from the shed. This one was heavy-duty; a proper log splitter with a thick handle and a wide blade.

I tried not to stare at it. Or at him.

“What do you think happened to them?” I asked, dragging my focus back to the path ahead.

“Sloane and Reid?”

I nodded.

His mouth tilted slightly, like he was weighing it up. “I think Jensen’s probably right. They wanted privacy to hook up. So someone will probably find them in one of the staff cabins. Or we might even find them in the director’s accommodation.”

“So you think they’re okay?”

“Yeah.” He casually rubbed the back of his neck. “If something had actually happened to them, we would’ve heard something, right?”

I nodded, slower this time. “True. They would’ve screamed.”

“Yup. Even if he sneaked up and got the jump on one of them, the other one would've made enough noise to get our attention.”

We slowed as we reached the main steps of the admin building, both of us going quiet. The boards creaked faintly under our weight as we stepped onto the porch.

Rhys reached for the door handle, then paused, glancing at me. “Ready?”

“Um… give me a sec.” I reached into my pocket, pulled out the sheathed knife, and slid it free. The blade caught the light, small and almost pathetic compared to what he was holding. “Can never be too prepared, right?”

His mouth curved, just slightly. Not quite a smile. “Right.”

He opened the door and stepped inside first, his gaze sweeping the darkness beyond the threshold.

I followed him in a second later. The doorway was narrow enough that when he slowed to let me catch up, I had to brush past him. My shoulder grazed his arm, and I caught the lingering scent of soap and woodsmoke, along with the dampness still clinging to his hair.

My pulse kicked, and for what felt like the millionth time, I had to remind myself that this was neither the time nor the place for attraction.

He reached to the side and flicked the light switch. Fluorescent bulbs buzzed overhead, flickering once before settling into a steady glow over the reception area. Everything was exactly where it should be.

“Well,” Rhys said. “They’re not in here. Let’s check the offices.”

We moved deeper into the building, our footsteps echoing on the worn wooden floor. A dim hallway stretched out ahead of us, lined with doors. Director Mabry’s office. Smaller staff offices. Storage.

Rhys nudged the first door open with the end of the ax, and the sound of the blade tapping lightly against the wood made something in my chest tighten.

The office was empty.

Second door. Same thing.

As we moved to the next, his gaze slid sideways to me, then dropped to the knife in my hand. “Do you actually know how to use that thing?”

I raised a brow. “Yeah, I’m familiar with how knives work. Chop chop, stab stab, slash slash.”

“That’s not what I meant.” He stepped into the next office, scanning it quickly before glancing at me over his shoulder. “I was asking if you actually know how to defend yourself with it.”

“Uhh… yeah? If a psycho killer comes at me, I stab him.” I made a vague stabbing motion.

Rhys stepped back out, looking toward the door across the hall. “What are you… five-three?” he asked. “A hundred and twenty pounds?”