CHAPTER 14

Danny's POV

"Guys listen. We have to decide what we are going to do."I finally spoke after what felt like a century of silence. We had to figure out a way to get out without sacrificing Anne. There was no way in hell I was gonna hand them over.

"I think I know a way out." Nik spoke his face on the computer. Ge was studying the architecture of the building finding a way out. His specialty since he takes an Engineering class.

"There is an old passage way right beneath the house. They found it when father purchased the land. It was supposed to be sealed off but father refused and turned it into his private passage way. It leads to the lake where he has a boat parked there. We can use it to escape here and use the radio to call the coast guard for help"

That sounded like a plan. Provided the mercenaries didn't discover the boat near the lake, they could be free.

"However...." Oh no. Here comes the bad part. Why is nothing ever easy.

"The entrance to the underground passage is here" Nik said pointing to a gate several metres away. It was on the outside meaning any attenpts of them entering will be spotted. Hence they needed a distraction. Someone who could lead their attemtion away while the others escaped. He had to hold on just long enough for him not to get caught while the others use the passage, then miraculously evade and join them on the boat.

After some much time discussing the new plan, the bomb was finaly down to the last 4 minutes. We needed to leave now or else risk getting trapped in the bomb explosion.

I was the first to go out since I was the one to distract the guards. "Goodluck" Nik, Rhoda and Rommy said all in unison. They knew the dangers of this mission. It was suicidal. So the fear was understandable. Anne however, just looked at me. I couldn't tell what she was feeling. Or if she was feeling anything. Maybe she was still drunk? But that couldn't be.

As I was still contempleting on her feelings, she suddenly moved towards me cupped my face in her hands and kissed me. The kiss was soft and slow. It was filled with many emotions. Guilt sorrow pain. Deep down she was blaming herself. Because those people were here for her. Earlier she tried to convice the group she act as the bait. She said she was the perfect candidate since the men were after her. Of course we refused. This group sticks together no matter what.

The kiss lasted only a few seconds but to me felt like longer. It was genuine and somewhere in my heart knew she was wishing me goodluck. As she pulled away from the kiss she looked me in the eyes and smiled. " Stay safe out there and see you in the boat in one piece"That there was all the motivation i needed.

With those simple words I was motivated. Its no secret I have feelings for Anne. But how those feelings erupted is something even I find a hard time to explain. When she first came to school, well you all know the story. We started on the wrong foot. But spending sometime with her has taught me a lot. Anne is the type of girl who is sweet friendly but never afraid to speak her heart out. She never lets anyone walk over her. She has strong determination and also likes learning new things. Ever since she joined the group I have become really close to her. And I think is where all the emotions erupted. Now I would make sure nothing ever destroyed her happiness.

The safe door opened and i walked into the empty corridor. The bomb was at a corner with less than 3 minutes remaining. I slowly made my way down the staircase. Although we scputed every corner through the cameras and made sure no one was in the house, I still approached with caution. The plan was I go out first, with a flare in one hand and a gun in the other and first shoot the flare in the air. That will make the bad guys chase me. As I chase them around the backyard, Nik and the others who would be cautiously waiting will make their way into the passage way through the gate. In the backyard there is a small door which leads back to the dining hall of the house. Its a short cut so it will make my way to the gate faster. Plus it has a small frame hence the mercenaries won't be able to follow me. It was the perfect plan.

I was now standing at the large wooden front door. On the other side of those doors are the terryfying men who are armed. I only had a gun which i know how to use of course. Ever since the death of my mother, dad made me attend all sort of defense classes without forgetting a weapons class. So lets just say i can use any weapon and also happen to have a black belt. But all of that was useless when in this situation I was outnumbered and outclasses. No classes were compared to the level of training they had.

I took a long breath and then opened the large door. And just like that the plan went into motion.

Everything went according to plan. As soon as I stepped out and shot the falre gun, all the bad guys started to chase after me. I ran and headed towards the back. Every now and then i would turn and shoot a couple of rounds at them. This would make them stop and take cover, buying me a couple of seconds. Of course that was all I needed. A couple of seconds to find the hidden door and use it to go to the front of the house. Since it was hidden they would spend an amount of time searching the backyard for me hence allowing me to take the pathway towards the lake and join the others.

It was a plan that required nothing to go wrong. As I reached the back yard the door was right where it was supposed to be. I took the small path leading me back to the large dining hall. I ran towards the front of the house and passed where Nik and the others were hiding earlier. It was empty ahich mearnt that the plan worked. They were on their way to the boat. Happiness filled my heart. My friends were finally safe.

I was just a few steps to the gate that led to the lake when I heard a sound behind me. "Don't move even a single muscle or else I'm gonna blow your brains out."

'oh crap'