The Investor by K.J. Kalis

Author:K.J. Kalis [Kalis, KJ]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-05-26T16:00:00+00:00

27

“Are you sure?” Angelica asked, resting her hand on Emily’s elbow. “We have no idea where this staircase goes.”

Emily glanced back at Angelica. “We’ll never know if we don’t go and look. You can stay here if you like.”

“Are you kidding? No way. I want to see it too.” She sounded like a little kid who’d been offered the opportunity to enter Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. It was an offer too good to miss.

Emily didn’t wait any longer. It was time to see what it was that Vasso was hiding. She descended the stairs after flicking a light switch on near the door they’d found, pulling the bookshelf back into place, and closing the door at the top of the steps. Surprisingly, the stairwell was brightly lit. Emily looked around. It was nothing but an average wooden staircase with a single handrail that descended into the darkness. There was no option to go up either. It was a one-way trip. Down or nothing.

Emily moved a little bit more slowly as she descended the stairs, keeping her eyes focused on what was in front of her. Tactically, she knew she was at risk. She had no gun, no knife, and no way to defend herself, other than her fists. And, to complicate matters, there were only two options for movement — either she could go forward or she’d have to run back up the steps and into Vasso’s office.

It wasn’t ideal.

If she’d still been with CPD, she would’ve had her sidearm out and would be clearing the stairwell with a partner, not her overly dramatic red-haired sister who was fantastic with a laceration but not competent at all when it came to self-defense, at least that Emily knew of.

As best as Emily could tell, they descended about one floor when the staircase abruptly ended with a door that matched the one at the top. It was locked. Emily pulled a set of keys out of her pocket that she’d gotten from Jeff downstairs and tried the three of them that were on the ring. No luck. She didn’t have her lock-picking set with her either. She looked over her shoulder at Angelica, who shrugged and started to turn back to go upstairs again.

“Not so fast. We’ve come this far. I want to see what’s on the other side of the door.” Standing on the last step, Emily lifted her leg up and kicked the door with everything she had just above the lock set, the heel of her boot slamming into the door. With a crack, the wood splintered, the door bouncing back against the frame on its hinges.

“Geez.” Angelica nodded. “Remind me not to make you mad.”

Emily glanced over her shoulder. “You should know that already. We came from the same parents.”

Without saying anything else, Emily jumped down the last step and pushed the door to the side, where it had bounced back to half closed with the concussion of the heel of her foot hitting the wood. She raised her eyebrows.

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