"Are you sure you don't need a bandage or anything?" I said, attempting to sound nonchalant but concern poured from my words, highlighting my uneasiness to Luke.
"Yes," he sighed, readjusting his shirt. "I've had worse, trust me. As for now, we need to get you the hell out of here." He moved swiftly over to the door, catching hold of my hand in the process. "We'll head downstairs, but it won't be long until they find Blake and well, realise he isn't me."
Luke stilled by the door, waiting a beat before giving Ed the go ahead to continue down the hallway. "Do you know where my father is?"
"Him and a team were heading to wait out front, that way Legrenzi can't leave without us knowing," he replied, gently squeezing my hand in reassurance.
"I'm sorry Luke," I murmured throughout the silence that had presented itself as we meandered throughout the corridors in a bid to reach the staircase as soon and as quietly as possible. "I didn't mean to panic or worry you by being here, I just couldn't carry on, you know that right?"
"Of course I do," he whispered, and although I couldn't see his face for confirmation that he was being truthful, his tone alone told me that he had no feelings of resentment towards me. "You saved my life Adelaide, you did what any other selfless person would have done."
We came to a standstill as we reached the stairwell, Ed being cautious and listening out for any susceptible sounds, while Luke twisted his body to face me. He trained his eyes directly onto mine, his free hand moving to cup my face. "You were brave too. I know what all of this does to you, especially after what you've gone through, but yet you're here fighting my corner. I can't thank you enough for that. We're going to get you out of here, I've got you. Just remember what I said. You need to be strong for me okay?"
I nodded meekly, knowing what I needed to do, but not being able to promise him I would be able to maintain it.
"I love you," Luke said suddenly, moving to press a chaste kiss to my lips before I could respond.
"Luke," Ed whispered from where he stood, positioning his gun ahead of his chest as his feet took on the first few steps of the staircase. He motioned his head toward the ground floor, where a hushed murmuring could be heard.
My heart picked its pace up instantly, knowing for certain that the men uttering below us weren't on our side. Legrenzi and his men were considerably carless for their level. Luke evidently sensed my shift in control over my emotions, his hand clenching my hand tighter against his palm, encouraging my body to silently advance down the stairwell.
Not a single one of us left an inch of our presence behind, making our journey imperceptible to anyone in the vicinity. We were light on our feet, maintaining quiet breathing to avoid anything seeming out of place to the people stalking the room below us. Despite all of this, as we neared the bottom of the stairs, it was evident they had been aware of our presence before we had even stepped foot onto the floor of the corridor.
The haunting sound of guns being loaded, along with their safety caps being lifted bounced around the walls in a sinister manner. Luke and Ed instinctively raised their weapons higher, drawing me to pull my own from my back pocket.
Ed's feet landed noiselessly onto the floor as he reached the bottom, Luke going to do the same but pausing in the process. He rapidly whipped his body around to face me.
"Duck!" he called, forcing my body to the floor in an instant. He left no time for hesitation as he flicked his finger twice in succession against the trigger, sending two deadly bullets to the top of the stairs. I refused to let my eyes glance at what he had fired at, with the sound of two bodies falling heavily to the floor telling me more than I wished to know.
