Guardian [Completed]

Thirteen (Devina)

I didn’t have time to panic. I manually restarted my heart and was immediately on the move.

I hit Thomas’ number on my speed dial as I ran back to the hotel.

“Finley!” He gave me his typical greeting on the second ring.

“Code word Romulus! I need Josh’s 20 STAT!” I said with urgency.

Thomas didn’t ask questions. Before we left, he had planted a GPS on one of the bracelets Josh always wore.

“Loading them into your phone now. Call me if you need backup. Fare thee well.”

“If I don’t return, avenge my death.”

My chest contracted as it always did when we gave each other our usual goodbyes before I went into a dangerous situation. But I kept running. I wasn’t far from our hotel now. Within a few minutes, I was there and heading toward my SUV where it was parked in a private lot. I pulled my phone from its case on my arm and quickly loaded the app that would unlock and start the engine.

Guests in the parking lot stared at me in wonder as I sprinted across the lot, launched myself into the car, and peeled out of my parking spot. I quickly plugged my phone into the console computer. Within seconds, my navigation system was pointing me toward Josh.

He was six miles away.

I tried my hardest to slow my breathing as I began to weave in and out of traffic.

Deep breaths, Dev.

My heart rate wouldn’t slow. The extreme anxiety I was feeling would not subside.

The question I couldn’t bear to answer kept repeating in my head.

What have I done?

I swore loudly when I realized I didn’t have my gun.

Fucking hell.

The swearing continued as I dodged traffic and broke numerous driving laws. Three cars nearly met their demise before I finally arrived at the building Josh’s GPS pointed to: an abandoned hospital.

The fact Josh could already be dead entered my mind but I quickly threw it out. I couldn’t let it get in my way.

I briskly climbed out of the car and jogged over to the front entrance. The door creaked loudly when I pulled it open. Of course. Can’t do this quietly; it would be too easy.

After trying to close the door with minimal noise, I stopped to take a few deep breaths and center myself. I closed my eyes and listened to my surroundings.

It was completely silent. Josh was still alive though. I could feel it.

I quickly moved to the stairwell and began to ascend. Even with my light steps, silence was not in my favor. It seemed every move I made echoed tenfold against the walls.

My heart was pounding loudly in my ears like it was a radar trying to receive signals from Josh. His heartbeat must have met mine because when I hit the second floor I knew exactly where to go.

Turning right, I quickly padded down the hallway. The sounds of thumps and thuds and shouting grew louder until they reached a peak at the fourth door. I stopped beside it.

There was a small square window at the top of the door. Slowly, I raised up on my toes and peeked through the window to evaluate the situation.

There were two men. The one in front of the door had a gun and I wished for the hundredth time that I had my own. The other man was not armed and was crouched over Josh, who was slumped over in a chair.