The Valley of Kings and a Queen

Chapter 31

It's close to midnight, so we can't just walk out the front door of the hotel to leave. Well, we could, but it wouldn't be well-advised considering if the consignor or any of the hotel staff saw seven teenagers dressed in dark attire leaving at such a late hour, well it probably would raise suspicion. And we definitely didn't want to give any one the slightest idea that we might be part of whatever the news decides to cover about the missing artifacts at one of the most esteemed museums worldwide. So, we had to take other routes out of the hotel. On the second floor, there was a balcony that we knew was often empty based on our prior snooping, so we head there for our escape.

"Who wants to go first?" Grey asks, throwing the rope over the balcony and down into the bushes below. He nimbly ties and secures a knot to the rail of the balcony, and I pray to whoever is watching over that it holds for us. "I'll go last, so I can make sure it's secure."

"I'll go first," Finley steps up, "that way I can catch anyone if they accidently fall." I can't help but wonder well who's going to catch you if you fall. But I keep quiet, not wanting to dismantle Finley's courageous front that he has managed to put up. "Here goes nothing." He climbs over the rail clutching the rope between his two arms and begins scaling the balcony with ninja-like prowess.

Aiden, Olivier, and Henri follow next. Despite their usual manners and insistence of Ladies First, they deemed that in this rare occasion it would be best if more of them were on the ground in case one of us falls. Annie follows them pushing back her nerves that are teeming in the shadows. She's halfway down, when her footing stumbles, but luckily Olivier and Aiden are able to easily catch her, preventing any unwanted injuries this early on.

Luckily, the balcony was only a good thirty feet off the ground, and I wasn't afraid of heights. I climbed the museum of the British history museum, and we had more dangers in store for us. I climb over the rail then Grey hands me the rope that I grip ever so tightly. I start back peddling down the ball as though I'm headed down a rock wall. I've pretty much reached the ground when my boot loses its grip on the wall, and I tumble backwards into the bushes. I think I'm about to crash and fall on my neck, but strong hands wrap around my waist and pull me towards the ground.

"No worries, I got you," Finley whispers gently into my ears, and I know the butterflies that are in my stomach aren't solely there from my tumble.

"You alright?" Olivier comes to my side brushing off dirt from my clothes, always playing the role of my protective older brother that I never had growing up, but I'm glad for it now.

Before I have the chance to respond, Grey's landed next to us with his feline grace yet again another wolfish smile creeps across his face. Grey just starts running, turning a corner and heading down an alley. We all follow as if he was the alpha, and we were his pack, the wind howling in response as though it would provide us with some sort of encouragement for the hunt we were just about to begin.