Bitter Bite (Elemental Assassin #14)(84)

Thunk!

The hook punched into the stone wall right next to the access door. I unhooked

the rest of the line from the crossbow, wrapped it around one of the parking

garage’s columns, and yanked on it several times, making sure that it was

securely anchored on both ends. Then I clipped two metal handles to the line—

one for me and one for Bria.

“You’re up, baby sister.”

Bria nodded, took hold of the handle, and stepped up onto the roof ledge. The

wind whistled over her, making her blond ponytail flap around her head. She

shivered, and not because of the chill in the air.

“You don’t have to do anything,” I said, trying to reassure her. “Just let

your weight carry you down the zipline. When you get over the bank roof, let

go, drop, and roll. Easy as peach pie.”

“Easy. Right,” she said in a faint voice, peering down at the eight-story

drop.

“It’ll be over with before you know it.”

Even though her face was pale, Bria nodded and gripped the handle a little

tighter. “The things we do for love,” she muttered.

“Better watch out,” I teased. “That’s rapidly becoming your new motto.”

“Well, let’s just hope that Finn is still alive to appreciate all my

sacrifices.”

As soon as the words left her mouth, she winced, and we both fell silent,

hoping that Finn was indeed still alive. I wouldn’t let myself think about

the alternative—I couldn’t.

“Here goes nothing,” Bria whispered.

Before she could think about it anymore, she pushed off the ledge. Gravity

immediately pulled her down, and she sailed down the zipline with barely a

whisper of sound. As soon as she was over the bank roof, she let go of the

handle, dropped down, and rolled to a stop. She lay sprawled facedown on the

roof for several seconds, then slowly got back up onto her feet. Even though

she was wobbling from all the adrenaline rushing through her body, Bria gave

me a shaky thumbs-up and pulled out one of her guns, screwing a silencer onto

the end of the barrel.

I gave the zipline several more hard yanks, making sure that it was still

secure. Silvio was peering over the side of the ledge, his face as pale as

Bria’s had been, but Owen stepped up, pulled me into his arms, and kissed me.

We broke apart, both breathless, staring into each other’s eyes.

“Don’t you dare die before Silvio and I get into the bank,” he whispered.

I grinned. “Never.”

I kissed him again, then got onto the ledge and took hold of the second

handle. On the opposite roof, Bria waved her hand, urging me to hurry.

“And away we go,” I whispered, and pushed off from the ledge.

For a moment, I had the freeing, utterly weightless sensation of being

suspended in midair. Then gravity took over, dragging me down the way it

always did. The wind whipped around my face, making my ponytail slap against

my shoulders, and I had the sudden urge to laugh. Despite the situation,

despite the danger Finn was in, despite the fact that I could fall to my

death, this was still fun.

Three seconds later, I was over the bank roof. I softened my knees, let go of

the handle, and rolled to a stop, coming up into a low crouch.

Bria helped me to my feet. “Are you okay?”

“Yep. You?”

“I’m fine.” Her stomach rumbled ominously. “Except for a sudden urge to

throw up.”

“Don’t worry. It’ll pass.”

I went over, pressed my hand against the wall where the grappling hook was,

and used my Stone magic to crack the hook out of the wall. Then I took the

hook and the attached zipline, walked over to the edge of the roof, and

dropped the whole thing over the side. I gave Silvio a thumbs-up, and he

started hauling in the zipline and hook.

It didn’t take long, and he signaled me when he was done. Then he and Owen

disappeared from view to get into position in front of the bank. They were

going to park down the street in Silvio’s car and monitor things from there

until I needed them for phase two of my plan. I didn’t want to make it down

to the bank lobby only to find that Deirdre had brought in more reinforcements

through the front door.

But first, Bria and I had to get through the door in front of us.

Most people didn’t bother to secure the doors and windows above the first two

floors of their homes and offices, but Stuart Mosley and the other folks at

First Trust were far more cautious than most. They had to be, given all the

millions in cash, jewelry, bonds, and more stored inside. Normally, the two

security cameras mounted over the access door would have been swiveling around

in constant circles, covering every single part of the roof, and a faint hum

would have been emanating from the door itself, since it was electrified.

But the cameras were frozen in place, with no red lights flashing on them, and

the only sound was the wind continually gusting across the roof. So I made a