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I stare at them both, unmoving, for far longer than I’d ever like to admit to myself before I finally reach out and snatch them off the floor.
My hands shake as I unfold the paper and read the note penned inside.
Take the diary and envelope, and go find Luci.
Now.
I can’t help but feel a little disappointed by the simple urgency of the note, but at least it gives me some solid direction.
Grimacing against the next wave of pain, I tuck the note and envelope back into the diary before clutching it to my chest as I pull myself up onto my feet … only to be reminded of the ridiculous heels I’m still wearing.
Reaching down to undo the stilettos, I take great pleasure in chucking them across the room, even as I have to remain doubled over as another wave of cramps rips through me.
Blood has begun to trickle down and stain my inner thighs, but I force myself to ignore it as I stumble my way toward the door.
I pause, my hand on the doorknob as I try to think where Luci might be.
My mind swims, hazy from both the blood loss and lack of oxygen, and then I remember what Valentine ordered his men to do just before we left.
Turning, I glance around the room before making my way into Valentine’s closet as quickly as I can. There are shelves upon shelves of shoes, but everything else is hidden behind a wall of panels that I cannot for the life of me seem to get open.
My legs tremble as I lean against one of the walls in frustration.
I don’t have much time. I’m getting weaker by the minute, but I can’t go through that maze without some way to find my way out again.
Everything feels so overwhelming as I fight back the tears that have started to burn the backs of my eyes. Then it dawns on me what I’m staring at.
Shoes, and more importantly … shoelaces.
I push myself away from the wall and toward the shelves.
Placing the diary on the floor, I desperately begin yanking out each and every shoelace that I can get my hands on before knotting them together to form one long string. Winding the ball of shoelaces around one arm, I grab the diary off the floor and hurry from the room as quickly as I can.
My heart races as I make my way down the hall, my body leaning against one wall to help keep me upright as I struggle through the pain. It’s only as I’m halfway down the stairs that I suddenly realize how dangerous my situation actually is.
If they really are vampires, what the heck am I doing running around bleeding all over the place?
And what about Valentine’s men? Are they vampires, too?
I shake the thoughts from my mind, it’s far too late to worry about any of that now. It’s not like I have the strength to climb back up the stairs anyway.
As I finally make it to the ground floor, my whole body trembles from both exhaustion and blood loss. I’m forced to sit on the bottom steps for a few minutes to catch my breath before carrying on.
I’m honestly surprised I haven’t been caught by now as I pull myself to my feet and stumble onward toward the hall. Peering around the corner, I frown at the strange emptiness of everything.
The silence of it all.
Something is off, but I don’t have the time or energy right now to care.
Gritting my teeth, I power on, still bracing myself against the wall as I move toward the maze at the back of the building. My breathing is heavy as I lean against the corner where it starts and peer down into the strangely empty halls.
Letting out some of the string in my hand, I make my way inside the maze. I don’t even know if this will work. If I’ll even be able to get through the hidden entryway if Idofind it. Let alone the huge metal door.
That doesn’t matter. All that matters is I that Itry.
Pushing on, I wind my way through the halls, pressing my hand to every dead end I encounter before carefully backtracking and trying again.
After what feels like ages, I’m forced to stop in the middle of a cross section of unexplored hallways. There’s no string left to unwind, and I don’t know how much deeper the maze goes.
