by Karen Lynch
I put a hand over my mouth. Please don’t let that be Romeo.
Craning my neck, I tried to get a better look around. My breath caught when I spotted dog crates sitting on some of the seats that were still bolted to the floor. I thought I saw a shape in one of the crates, but they were too far away for me to be certain.
One of the ogres said something in a deep rumbling voice, and then he lay back and pillowed his head with his arms. His companion kept eating, and I wondered if he was on guard or a slow eater. I watched him for another five minutes before he lay down and curled up on his side.
Carefully letting the curtain fall back into place, I returned to Violet and told her what I’d seen. “I’m going to have to get closer to those cages,” I whispered.
“How long does it take ogres to fall asleep?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know, but they just finished a meal. That should make them sleepy. Text Mandy and tell her we might be here a while, but whatever you do, don’t mention them eating. I’m going to watch them for a while to make sure they’re asleep.”
She patted her coat pockets. “I left my phone in the car.”
“Use mine.” I handed her my phone and went back to the curtain, where I found the ogres in the same position as when I’d left them. A few minutes later, one of them began to snore. When neither of them moved after another ten minutes, I hoped that meant they were both asleep. I could take on one ogre, two if I absolutely had to, but I was praying it didn’t have to come to that.
I was about to let go of the curtain when a new sound reached me. I froze and listened until I heard it again, the plaintive mewing of a cat. It was followed by scratching and the distinctive whine of a dog. It could be any dog, but hearing it gave me a sliver of hope that Romeo was still alive.
Turning away from the curtain, I nearly jumped out of my skin when I bumped into someone. I raised my hands in self-defense before it hit me that the person was too short to be an ogre.
I shot Violet a glare she couldn’t see in the darkness of the stage and tugged her back to where I’d left her. “Are you crazy? I nearly clobbered you.”
“I wanted to see what was taking so long. Are they asleep?”
I huffed a breath. “One is, and the other might be. And I heard a cat and dog crying in the cages.”
She gave my arm an excited squeeze. “What now?”
“We’ll see if there is a door from backstage to the auditorium, and I’ll sneak out to get the animals.”
“I’m going with you.” She held up a hand when I shook my head. “You’ll need help getting the animals out of there. And I’m lighter on my feet than you.”
She had a point. Years of ballet and dance lessons had given her the stealth of a ninja. But she was also jumpy, and she’d probably pee herself if she came face-to-face with an ogre.
“Stop overthinking it, and let’s do this,” she said when I took too long to respond.
I opened my backpack. “Promise me you’ll run if they wake up.”
“I will.”
Finding my extra stun gun, I handed it to her. “This won’t stop an ogre, but it will slow them down enough for you to get away. You’ll have to give them a little more juice than you would for a human.”
“Gotcha.”
“Okay. Let’s go.” I headed to the side of the building closest to the dog crates, where a set of steps led down to a small door. The door hinges squeaked, and I held my breath as I opened the door wide enough for us to fit through.
The carpeted auditorium floor muffled our footsteps as we crept along the outside aisle toward the crates. The only sounds in the room were the crackle of the fire and the ogres’ snores. If luck was with us, we’d grab the animals and be out of here before those two awoke.
I stopped at the rows where the crates sat. This close, I could see that it wasn’t going to be as easy to free the animals as I’d hoped. The crates were at the end of the row closest to the fire with their doors facing away from me. I was going to have to get a lot closer to the ogres than I wanted to.
“Stay here”, I mouthed to Violet. I entered the row behind the crates and slowly made my way toward them, freezing every time one of the ogres snorted or moved in his sleep. It took forever to reach the crates, where I was greeted by a cat’s mewing that grew more insistent by the second.
“Shhh.” I stuck my fingers through the bars of the top crate, and the white cat quieted immediately to rub against them. I’d seen feral cats, and this wasn’t one. This was someone’s pet.
I bent to peer into the bottom crate and found a shivering chihuahua. He wore a thin collar, telling me he was also someone’s pet. Anger sliced through me, but I pushed it back. Now was definitely not the time to lose my cool.
I moved around to the front of the crates, close enough to the fire now to feel its heat. From here I could peer into a plastic pet carrier. I wasn’t sure what I was looking at until it moved. It was a pair of black ferrets that looked more curious than afraid when they saw me.
A crack came from behind me, and I turned my head so fast I thought I’d given myself whiplash. I let out a breath when sparks sprayed from the metal drum. It was only a piece of wood popping in the fire.
Biting my cheek, I leaned down to look into the last crate. My heart leapt when I met the black button eyes of a teacup Yorkie wearing a blue rhinestone collar.
Romeo panted and let out a small whine. I petted him through the bars to calm him as I straightened and waved for Violet to join me. I couldn’t carry all of these animals at once, and I was afraid they’d make a racket if I took them one at a time.
Romeo’s crate was wedged in such a way that I’d need to move the one on top to open his. I’d never handled ferrets before, so I left them in their carrier. I grimaced when it got hooked on the cat’s crate and made a small squeaking sound.
An ogre snorted loudly, and I nearly dropped the carrier. My heart thudded wildly. If anyone ever asked me what to do for an adrenaline rush, my immediate response would be to sneak into an abandoned building and steal from sleeping ogres.
By the time Violet reached me, I had the carrier free, and I handed it off to her. Motioning for her to wait, I freed the cat and passed it to her as well. That left the two dogs for me.
It took some maneuvering to shift Romeo’s crate without making a noise, but I finally managed to get the door open. I unzipped the top of my coat and tucked him inside. He wasn’t any bigger than Finch, so he fit in there easily.
Once Romeo was secure, I went to work freeing the chihuahua. The poor little thing was so terrified I had to grasp his collar and tug him toward me. His nails scraped the plastic floor of the crate, and he let out a small whimper when I lifted him into my arms. He was trembling violently, but there wasn’t time to comfort him. I’d make sure he got lots of that when we were out of there.
I walked carefully back toward Violet, who was trying to hold the cat that was suddenly freaking out. With a hiss, it leaped from her arms and took off like the hounds of hell were on its heels.
Violet looked at me, and her mouth opened in horror. At the same time, I realized the room had gone strangely quiet.
I stopped and looked back over my shoulder at the ogre sitting up beside the fire. He stretched and looked around, and then his eyes found me.
He bellowed, the sound echoing in the auditorium and sending his friend scrambling to his feet. I turned and sped toward Violet, who looked paralyzed with fear.
“Go,” I yelled at her above the ogres’ roars.
She didn’t move.
Feet thundered behind me, and I put on an extra burst of speed. “Violet, get your ass moving!”
I reached her as she picked up the ferret carrier. We turned toward the door beside the stage and skidded to a stop at the sight of the ogres coming through it. Three, four, five, six…
I grabbed Violet’s arm and spun in the other direction. I started toward the theater’s main entrance, but a pile of seats blocked it. Changing
direction, I ran to the stairs to the upper levels, pulling her with me. I’d seen a fire escape on the outside of the building, so there had to be an emergency exit upstairs.
I pushed Violet ahead of me, and she flew up the stairs like she had wings on her feet. At the mezzanine level, I glanced back at our lumbering pursuers who hadn’t reached the stairs yet. I sent up a silent thank you to Aedhna for not gifting ogres with speed.
I paused to look around and get my bearings. The fire escape should be straight ahead, but it was too dark up here to see far. Taking Violet’s arm again, I set off to where the exit should be.
My euphoria at finding the door died when I saw the chain and padlock on it. I had my picks on me, but the pounding of many feet on the stairs told me we didn’t have time for that.
We ran to the stairs on the far side of the mezzanine. My hope that we could run down them and escape was dashed by the sight of four ogres with clubs waiting below. Ogres were not as stupid as people made them out to be.
Violet and I ran up the stairs to the balcony level before the ogres could spot us and alert their friends. We had a head start, but that wasn’t going to do us much good if we got trapped up here.
Think, Jesse! I fought back my rising panic. If I was alone, I would try something daring like using the climbing rope and grappling hook in my pack to swing from one of the boxes to the stage. But Violet couldn’t make that jump. I wasn’t sure I could either.
We ran to the back corner of the balcony level where there were two doors to the men’s and women’s restrooms. Opening the first door, I shoved Violet inside.
“Hide in here and take care of these guys.” I handed her the chihuahua and Romeo. “I’ll draw them away.”
“You can’t go out there alone.”
I gave her a quick hug, almost squishing the two dogs. “I’ll be okay.”
I left before she could argue with me. Please, keep her safe, I prayed to whoever might be listening.
Shouts and thumps came from below as the ogres searched the mezzanine level. I never should have let Violet come in here with me, but it was too late to think about that now. I needed to lead them as far away from her as I could, and then I’d figure out how to get us out of this mess.
I ran lightly toward the private boxes along the side of the auditorium. As I passed the stairs, an ogre walked into my path, and we collided. It was like running into a wall. He looked as startled as I was, and that was what saved me. Before he could recover and call for his friends, I pulled my stun gun and zapped him.
He wavered on his feet. I could have used that moment to get away, but he’d shake it off quickly and bring the rest of them down on me. I struck out, slamming my fist into his thick neck beneath his ear. Ogres were built like bulls, but they had weaknesses like everyone else. The trick was reaching those weak spots without getting your head ripped off.
The ogre’s beady eyes rolled back in his head, and he dropped like a stone. I stared in shock at his prone body. What the hell? My strike should have hurt him, but I was nowhere strong enough to knock him out with one blow.
I flexed my hand until I realized it wasn’t hurting. I’d hit him hard enough to bruise my hand, yet I didn’t feel the slightest twinge of pain.
Stepping around the ogre, I continued toward the boxes. I could ponder this mystery later. Right now, I had much bigger problems to deal with.
I entered the box closest to the stage and reached into my pocket for my phone. It was time to call Maurice for help. He’d lecture me for my stupidity, but I wasn’t going to risk Violet’s life to save my pride. I just needed to keep the ogres away from her long enough for backup to arrive.
My stomach plummeted as I patted my pockets frantically. I’d given my phone to Violet to text Mandy, and I’d forgotten to get it back from her.
I peered through the balcony rails and saw the four ogres on the ground level watching the stairs. I could see shapes moving around on the mezzanine, and my fear ratcheted up when two of them approached the stairs to this level.
I pulled off my backpack and took out my rope, which I looped around the sturdy balustrade. I donned the backpack again and checked to see if the coast was clear. Taking a deep breath, I climbed over the rail and shimmied down the rope to the box below.
My plan was to get to the stage, let them see me, and run like hell to draw them outside. As long as they didn’t know Violet was still in the building, she was safe until I could get help.
I made it into the box and ducked out of sight seconds before two of the ogres below turned to look toward the stage. I watched them from my hiding spot, waiting for them to turn away again. They didn’t. Anxiety built in my gut. I could get down the rope and to the stage before they caught me, but they’d see I was alone. This only worked if they thought the two of us were getting away.
I was so focused on the situation below that I didn’t register the footsteps coming toward me until the door banged against the wall in the box next to mine.
I grabbed the rope, ready to swing down to the first floor. I didn’t have any choice but to go now. If I got trapped, there was no way I could help Violet.
A loud caterwaul echoed through the building. I peeked out in time to see the white cat tear down the stairs and disappear into the back of the auditorium. All four ogres below looked in the direction the cat had gone, and they seemed to be discussing who would go after the animal.
I swung myself over the railing and slid down the rope. The second my feet touched the floor, a shout came from above, and the four ogres spun toward me. I let go of the rope and ran.
“Argh.” I stumbled when something hard slammed into my tailbone, sending pain radiating up my spine. Righting myself, I looked from the wooden club on the floor to the glaring ogre in the box above me.
“You, stay,” he ordered in a booming voice.
I turned and sprinted for the stage as shouts broke out behind me. I grabbed the edge of the stage to hoist myself up, but I faltered when a terrified scream split the air.
Violet.
Blood roared in my ears as I whirled to face the advancing ogres. My foot kicked something, and I bent to pick up a metal rod from an old microphone stand. Hefting it in both hands, I stalked toward the ogres between me and my best friend.
They laughed, and one of them charged me. Wielding the rod like a staff, I swung low, hooking it behind his ankles and sending him crashing to the floor.
I barely had time to straighten up when the next one came at me. I lunged away from his charge, but his fingers managed to snag my hair and my glasses. The glasses went flying and my eyes watered at the pain in my scalp as I pulled free. It felt like half my hair had been ripped out, and I was relieved to see it hanging down on the side of my face.
I brought the rod around to strike at the back of his neck. He anticipated my move and raised his club to deflect the attack on his most vulnerable area. I let the heavy rod slide along the club, slamming it into his thick fingers. Howling like an angry toddler, he released the club to cradle his injured hand.
Backing up, I dropped into a defensive stance as three more ogres joined the others. They formed a semicircle around me, and I swallowed hard. I was going to have to fight my way out of this.
Chapter 13
THE OGRES TOOK a step toward me, and I tensed as I studied them for weaknesses. If they came at me one at a time, I might be able to fend them off, but I didn’t have a chance against the four of them at once.
The barest creak of a floor board warned that someone had snuck up behind me, even before the ogres shifted their gazes to something over my shoulder. A haze of pure adrenaline settled over me as I crouched and swung low to avoid the club that was likely aimed at my head. The metal rod slammed into a leg, and my assailant let out a grunt of pain.
I rose, swinging again, but he grabbed my weapon to block the strike. I released the rod and put all my strength into the blind punch I threw at him. My fist connected with his face with so much force th
at the shock traveled up my arm to my shoulder.
The metal rod clattered against the floor. I thought for a second about picking it up, then changed my mind and sprinted the six feet to the stage. Grabbing the edge of the stage, I pulled myself up with ease – and found my escape blocked by a pair of jean-clad legs.
Jeans? Ogres didn’t wear jeans.
A male hand appeared in front of my face, one that definitely didn’t belong to an ogre. I took it without thinking, and he pulled me to my feet. Pushing my hair out of my face, I looked up into Iian’s eyes, which stared at me in amused wonder.
“What…are you doing here?” I uttered between gasps of air.
Someone clapped in the auditorium. I spun to see Kerr applauding as he and Faolin herded a group of ogres down the stairs. My gaze fell to the ogres I’d fought, and I found them kneeling and pleading with none other than the crown prince of Unseelie.
“I should have brought my phone,” Kerr called. “No one will ever believe me.”
“What…?” The question died on my tongue when Lukas turned to look at me. His nose and the front of his shirt were bloody, and his eyes were as hard as flint.
I gulped and backed up a step, only to come up against Iian, who prodded me to the edge of the stage. When I refused to jump down, he said, “He’s not angry at you.”
“His expression would suggest otherwise,” I mumbled, not moving.
Iian chuckled and leaned in to whisper, “You punched the Unseelie prince in the face and almost put him on his ass. Tell me that doesn’t feel good.”
I lifted my chin because he was right. For weeks, I’d been taking out my pent-up emotions on the punching bags at the gym, and not one of those sessions had given me the satisfaction I felt now.