Long Way Down

Part 3

"Wake up, princess," a voice said before shoving my shoulder. 

"Hey," I mumbled, my arm coming up so I could rub my shoulder. I blinked a few times and looked at the masked boy as he leaned over my tied up wrist. "What are you doing?"

"Do you want to get out or not?" he demanded before looking up at me. "Shut up and work this rope while I do your ankles."

My mouth snapped shut over my retort as I tugged on the rope. Where was Carl? Had he decided to let me go and convinced someone else to help him?

"You need to speed this up, princess," the man said, slapping my leg to gain my attention. "You want to get out? Get that rope undone within-" he paused and looked at his watch. "Undone within two minutes. Unless you want to put up with Stephen."

"Who are you?" I asked him as I finally scratched through the rope to the second layer. I tugged on it harshly and felt my skin crack under the pressure. Wincing, I tried to push pass the pain to get the final piece of rope off my wrist. "Where's Carl?"

The man remained silent and gave up tugging on the rope; he pulled out a small pocketknife and sliced through the material until it was laying in tatters around my feet. I quickly pulled my legs up, feeling as if the rope would magically wrap around me again. 

"You've made yourself bleed," he commented, pushing my hand out the way before placing the knife against the rope. "If you move, I'll be taking you out of here over my shoulder."

It took me a moment to realise what he meant - if I moved, my wrist would be sliced. I tried to keep my breathing under control as the rope fell away from my wrist. Quickly cradling my arm against my chest, I let out a small cry as the burn on my skin touched my clothing. I swung my legs off the table and felt my body wobble as I got my sense of balance back. As I tried to find my shoes, I noticed a black lump on the floor on the other side of the table. 

"You knocked out Carl?" My head whipped towards the man in surprise. "He was thinking about letting me go!"

"Keep your voice down," he snapped, his fingers curling around the bottom half of my face. I met his gaze and felt my knees wobble. "You want to get out of here alive, princess, then you better do as I say."

"Stop calling me princess," I demanded, swatting his hand away then groaning in pain as my wrist caught his arm. "This seriously hurts," I mumbled, rubbing my hand gently. If I didn't get myself together I would be left here to fend for myself and it seemed like this guy knew the best route out. "Can you tell me who you are?"

He glanced at me and I couldn’t shake the feeling that I knew him - I didn't see anyone at the party that had such beautiful eyes but now definitely wasn't the time to swoon over attractive features. I looked away from him and let him lead the way through the corridors. He knew where he was going, that much was obvious. I just couldn't work out why he was helping me escape.

"I think we'll stick with your knight in shining armour," he finally answered. "That's enough for you to know about me."

Deciding not to bother pushing him, I glanced around me and tried to remember everything we were passing. If we were separated then I could find my way around on my own, I just strongly hoped that I wouldn't have to do this on my own. 

"There's going to be four guys in the next room," he told me, lifting his arm in front of me. I felt my chest smack into his arm and winced momentarily before he glared at me - apparently, there was no time for pain. "I need you to be quiet and let me get us through without anyone getting hurt."

My eyes narrowed in suspicion as he poked his head around the doorway. What was different about him? Something didn't quite add up about him and the way he was acting - had we met before and I didn't realise it?