A Marriage of True Minds: A Sasha McCandless Novella by Melissa F. Miller

Author:Melissa F. Miller [Miller, Melissa F.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Goodreads: 18877745
Publisher: Brown Street Books
Published: 2013-11-16T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER SIX

The long hallway was dark and silent. The only sound was the rustle of their silk dresses. The only light came from the slivers of moonlight that peeked out from under the closed doors lining the hall. If the layouts were consistent, each room would have its own wall-sized window facing either the ocean or the purple mountains.

Sasha took two steps then hesitated. Aroostine pulled up short beside her, and Naya bumped up against Aroostine’s back.

“Why’d we stop?” she hissed.

“I’m not sure which way to go.”

The resort’s reception hall formed a long L, with the dressing room nestled in the angle where the two arms met. At one end was the ballroom, which looked out over beach. At the extreme opposite end was the kitchen—an inefficient layout that, according to Chalotte, made sense for its proximity to the gardens and the path the local fishermen took when they hauled up their daily catch to sell to the chef. Whatever the reason, it meant that guessing wrong would place them as far as possible away from Connelly and his captors.

Aroostine spoke in a voice so low that Sasha barely heard her. “Don’t you think he and Hank would have headed for the ballroom at the first sign of trouble?”

Sasha considered it. “Hank, yes. But Connelly would have come looking for me.”

“He obviously didn’t find you. So he could be anywhere,” Naya offered helpfully. She pointed back toward the dressing room and the ballroom beyond it.

“Including the kitchen,” Sasha said, pointing the other direction.

They looked at one another for a long moment.

Finally, Sasha said, “Kitchen.”

If the leader had found Connelly in the ballroom, surely he’d have sent someone to fetch the women from the dressing room by now.

But neither Aroostine nor Naya pressed her for her reasoning.

“One way’s as good as the other,” Naya conceded. “Let’s go.”

They crept along the wall as quickly as they dared, which wasn’t very fast at all.

As they drew closer to the kitchen, the sound of angry male voices rose from behind the door. Several men were speaking loudly and in unison. A cacophony of English and Spanish spilled out into the hall.

Aroostine put a hand on Sasha’s shoulder to stop her from moving forward any farther.

“What’s wrong?” she whispered in Aroostine’s ear.

“Shh.” Aroostine cocked her head to the side and stood perfectly still. She closed her eyes and listened. “He’s in there.”

“How can you tell?” All Sasha could hear was a din of yelling voices.

“I can make out his voice. He’s there; so is that leader guy; and at least one more guy. There may be two.”

“I don’t hear anything but noise,” Naya said.

Aroostine shrugged. “I grew up tracking wild animals. I can distinguish the sounds. Leo is in there. But we’re probably outnumbered.”

Naya bit down on her lower lip, thinking. “Okay, I have an idea. We need a distraction.”

Sasha nodded.

“You two hide. I’ll pretend to fall and yell for help. Someone will come running, when they do, you jump them.”

“That’s a terrible idea,” Aroostine informed her.

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