The Handsome Devil

Chapter 39 - Grand Escape

"God, I was knocking for--" Hunter stopped mid-sentence once he took in the girl's dishevelled state.

"What happened?" His warm hands carefully cupped her face as he starred into the exhausted puffed eyes, but she just shook it off.

"There's no time for this." Her voice was a nearly inaudible whisper, and the man's internal fight was apparent. He wasn't ready to let it go, but she was right. They had no time to waste.

"Ok," he fished out a belt-like object out of his backpack and held it in front of her so she could slip her legs through the two loops, which he then pulled up all the way under her derriere and secured the main part tightly around her waist.

There was no doubt her old self would blush at the intimacy - Hunter sure did - but the part of her existence was gone, and she couldn't tell if it was temporary.

"I know you're afraid of heights, but I'll need you to trust me on this." The boyish eyes stared right into her soul as he walked away.

"I'll secure a steel rope on the beam above your window." He narrated while executing the actions, and she mindlessly followed every one of his moves.

"It is thick enough to hold both of us," He gave it a strong tug before flashing a humourless smile. "And perhaps a couple of other people."

She was grateful for the attempts to put her mind at ease. However, the more he pushed it, the more she realised there was no trace of fear in her in the first place.

All she had was the numbness.

"Now I'll attach those," Hunter held up some sort of metal mechanism after dressing into a belt just like hers and locked its ends into the metal rings on them, so there were mere inches separating their heat radiating bodies.

He opened the window as wide as possible and fished out another mechanism which he used to clip them to the steel rope.

"No matter what, I want you to keep looking at me." He insisted before surprising her by lifting her body by the back of her thighs, her arms instinctively wrapping around his neck to stabilise herself.

"Don't look down." He repeated before leaping out the window and starting to abseil down the house's façade with suspicious ease.

About quarter of the way in, the girl did go against his warnings, and her eyes wandered towards the distant ground.

She would love to believe the unconventional calmness she felt was a result of Hunter's kind efforts, but it was doomed to remain a mere wish.

Is that how everything's gonna feel from now on?

The realisation might have crushed her. If she could feel anything at all.

Once on the ground, the man quickly undid the securing mechanisms and hastily pushed into hiding behind nearby bushes.

"Stay here and don't make a noise," He whispered before walking away and climbing back to her room.

At first, she was dumbfounded as to what's he doing, but it all became clear once he reappeared in the window and started to descend without any belay, the end of the rope hanging limply attached to his belt.

He's trying to NOT get us caught easily, dummy.

Her inner voice face palmed as it set in. It wasn't until his feet landed back on the ground that she realised she's been holding her breath in fear that he'll slip and fall down.

I can't make it out without him.

The man hastily packed all his tools into the backpack before quietly sneaking back to her and pushing it into her arms.