46

While I tried desperately to calm down and keep the small bedside lamp in my trembling hand, I kept looking up at Rian, who just stood there in complete calm and seemed to think about how to continue.

The odds really weren't in our favor because who knew what would happen here if one of us accidentally triggered the motion sensors.

"Now at least we know why nobody was standing guard outside the door," my big brother said quietly, looking around the dark hallway with concentration while Keeva was still stroking my free hand.

"Are you alright?" she asked worried and when I let my veiled gaze slowly slide to her, my heart kept beating against my ribs and my breathing was still uncontrolled, I just looked at her for help. But she couldn't help me, she couldn't help us and the thought that we would all die here soon made me panic more and more.

"Pull yourself together now, kindly!", Rian suddenly hissed at me from the side and grabbed the collar of my shirt to glare at me. "You can panic later if you don't mind! But now I need you! And not only me! Esme and Mandy rely on you too! So cut the shit!"

"Rian!" Keeva wanted to interrupt him, but when he fixed her with a blood-curdling stare, she stopped immediately and just looked at me wistfully.

"We're not at some friggin' Counseling Teatime here! Those stupid cupcakes and the constant diaper changes are making us soft, now just pull yourself together and just do what I tell you to do!"

"My muffins aren't stupid," Keeva murmured defensively, releasing my hand to cross her arms in protest, but Rian ignored her and released his hand from my shirt to slowly crouch down and look around .

"I'll go ahead and only when I'm back there and have the situation under control will you come after me! Woe to you move first," he explained calmly and took a last look at these thin, green laser threads and then completely raise carefully. "Understood?" he then wanted to know and looked at both of us expectantly until we nodded in agreement.

When I gradually forced myself to calm down because of his announcement, I watched him with bated breath as he walked very carefully between the green threads to the end of the hallway and peeked around the corner when he got there.

"You're next," Keeva suddenly said next to me and I immediately shook my head in the negative.

"If someone comes from behind, it would certainly not be good if you were standing here alone," I replied and after she turned her eyes into the darkness behind her, we both stared back at Rian, who made a sign with his hand that we should follow.

"Let's go then," Keeva smiled tormented and kicked around very carefully with her toes, only to reach Rian a short time later.

And now it was my turn.

With weak knees, I grasped the lamp in both hands and held my breath to step between the lasers, eyes on my black shoes.

"Wait!" Rian said suddenly and I froze in my tracks to look up to see Rian looking around in shock and Keeva clutching his back tightly.

And then I heard it too...

screams...

Screams that sounded so agonized they would probably be etched into me and my mind forever...

"That's Mandy... or Chiara," Keeva said in a trembling voice, and I immediately felt that hatred in every fiber of my body and continued to focus on getting out of this shitty laser maze, which I did some time later.

"And now?" I said, ready to bang Fiore's head and looked at Rian, who was pointing to a staircase behind us. A small window gave us enough light to look down over the narrow railing.

"And what if security guards are already waiting for us there?" Keeva wanted to know, not taking her eyes off the stairs while I looked at Rian and realized that, unlike me, he had a wife and children.

"I'll go first," I said firmly and was about to turn to the steps, but Rian grabbed my arm and turned me around.

"You were shot!" he reminded me and only then did I realize I still had that wound on my side, but it had stopped bleeding. It was probably just a graze, so at least I didn't feel any pain.

"And you have a wife and a daughter," I replied and now Keeva turned her sad-looking face away from the stairs to look back and forth between me and Rian. I recognized her expression. She would never say it openly, but she was incredibly grateful that I got ahead of Rian.

Rian also let go of my arm and looked at me in shock, because for the first time in his life he really had something to lose in such a situation.

"Don't worry," I grinned stupidly at both of them, holding up that ugly lamp. "I am heavily armed!"

"You're an idiot," Keeva said with tears in her eyes, carefully approaching me to give me a brief hug.

"Stop saying goodbye. Everything will be fine," I winked and felt Rian's hand on my shoulder. Our eyes met and after he gave me a grateful nod, I turned my back on them and very slowly took the first few steps down into the darkness.

"Call us when the coast is clear", Rian said and I looked around again.

"Or if you need help. We'll be right there," Keeva added.

"It'll be fine," I replied and disappeared down another dark hallway beneath them.

By now I knew it was no ordinary house. The floors were identical and again it went down further, so I could imagine that this building must have had many more floors.

I looked down the hallway. Through the small window behind me, I only recognized the first doors, but none of them had a light on...

Just when I wanted to go further down the building, holding the lamp tightly with both hands, I suddenly heard those loud cries for help again and turned in a flash to the hallway.

"Mandy..."