A Deal With the Devil

Chapter 14

Lena held a knife hidden in her thin sleeve.

The doctor took another slow step forward, his bright shoes crunching on the stones of empty ground. His soldiers surrounded him; they were like silent shadows, menacing silently.

Noah came closer to her, took a deep breath, and pressed his injured hand onto his chest. Blood seeped into his arm, yet he grumbled not a single word. He was also glaring at the editor in the very same way.

Measure. Compute.

Escape with dignity.

The doctor smiled self-satisfied like a winner beforehand. "You were poor at this, Lena."

Lina set back on her chin and fought to speak in a firm tone. "I have a habit of that."

The doctor chuckled. "I heard that." His eyes were on the bag over Noah's shoulder. "Send it again."

Lina's heart pounded the hardest.

Information. They risk it all to obtain evidence.

That evidence would be enough to destroy Ethan.

Noah stood at his side.

Lina fought to remain stationary. "And then?"

The doctor sighed heavily, as if hope was tightening around her chest like a noose. "Then I'll let you go."

Lena did laugh. Sharp. Bitter. Quick. "Yes. Because Ethan's so nice."

Most people's smile doesn't fit all sizes. "Ethan's not who you need to be afraid of now."

Her spine gave her a shiver of ice.

He's intelligent. She has notions what men want of her.

She's harmless.

It doesn't have to end that way.

Lena's fingers strayed. If they provided the information, they'd be losing credibility. They lost everything.

But if they didn't-

The doctor took another step forward.

Lina reached a conclusion.

---

High performance

He speedily and effortlessly pulled a knife out of his arm and pierced it.

The physician could only respond. One of the men stepped in, caught his wrist, and pulled it violently. He felt a stinging pain in his arm as the knife hit the floor.

A hand came down across his throat and shoved him to his knees.

Noah screamed.

He hit the floor with a punch to his gut. Lina clenched her teeth, her heart racing.

The middle-aged man was slouched beside her, close enough that she could catch the scent of his cologne, the light, expensive smell of a man who had never gotten his hands dirty.

He reached out and swept the hair off her face.

Lena jerked back very quickly.

The doctor just smiled. "You never know when to give up."

Lena looked at him, ignoring the pain in her wrist. "That's why I'm still alive, probably."

Her smile never faltered. "In the here and now."

---

Ultimatum

The mechanic rose up as if it were a regular job and wiped his jacket off.

He eyed Noah. "Hand over the bag."

Noah spat blood from his mouth onto the road. "Go to hell."

The doctor sighed.

Then, not skipping a beat, he took his gun out of his backpack and held it to Lena's head.

The world stopped.

Before Lena could move, the cold metal was against her temple.

Noah was strong. The car was silent. "One last chance."

Lina didn't move. She didn't even flinch.

She had experienced death before.

But this time was different. Because this isn't just his life.

Noah's fists tightened on the strap of the bag.

Lena saw the fight in his eyes.

Revealing information meant letting Ethan win.

But letting him die? Never.

The doctor raised his gun.

There was a loud bang in the empty room.

Noah let out a slow breath.

Then-

He threw the bag on the ground. It fell between them with a loud bang.

The doctor smiled. "Good boy."

Lena's gut clenched with anger.

The doctor leaned over to one of his men, who took the bag, opened it, and looked inside.

A smug smile spread slowly across the man's face. "He's here."

The doctor grunted in agreement. "Then I guess we'll be ending this."

She retreated and allowed her gun to drop.

Before Lina could even think about what was happening, the butt of the gun hit Noah in the head.

She passed out at once.

Lena screamed and tried to fight out of the encircling hands that held her, but was hit again and everything went to pieces. The last thing he heard before it went dark was:

The smiling face of the editor.

---

Standing in chains

Pain woke him up.

His head throbbed. His hands hurt.

He was sitting in a chair, his hands tied behind his back, the metal cutting into his skin. Lina blinked, her eyes wandering.

A burst of light flashed over her.

In the basement.

Stonewall.

Noah sat a few feet away, tied to another chair. His head slumped forward, blood trickling from the cut on his temple.

A warning reached him.

"Noah," he said.

He didn't move.

The door creaked open. Lena made herself presentable.

The doctor came in and fussed with his cufflinks as if he had time to spare.

Lena gulped. "If you're going to kill us, do it now."

The doctor laughed. "Where's the fun?"

He stepped closer to her and knelt at her feet. "Do you think Ethan is your biggest problem?" she wondered. "Does beating him solve that problem?"

Lina's heart beat the fastest.

Something in his tone made her feel even more nervous.

The doctor lowered his head. "You don't know, do you?"

Lina clenched her teeth. "What are you talking about?"

The doctor grinned.

A slow, knowing laugh.

And then he leaned closer.

Then he bent down and spoke in a low voice four words that made the hairs on her skin stand on end.

"You are never alone."

Lina shut her eyes. The doctor straightened things out.

Then he turned and left her to feel the stifling weight of the crushing words.

He wasn't sure what it was that frightened him more -

He doesn't get it.

Or, on some level, he did.