Chapter 7
The rusted rungs of the fire escape groaned under their weight as Leo and the waitress scrambled frantically toward the roof.
Below them, the security guard shouted in anger, his heavy boots slamming against the metal stairs as he began the pursuit.
The cold night wind whipped through the alleyway, stinging their faces as they reached the top landing and pushed open the heavy access door.
They stumbled out onto the flat gravel roof of the adjacent building, surrounded by a forest of towering brick chimneys and humming ventilation units.
Leo slammed the heavy steel door shut, sliding a thick iron security bolt into place just as the guard slammed his fists against the other side.
"Open this door right now!" the guard bellowed from within the stairwell, rattling the heavy metal frame with brute force.
"We don't have much time," Leo panted, looking across the narrow gap separating their roof from the next building over. "We have to jump to the next ledge."
The waitress stared across the four-foot abyss, her stomach tightening at the dizzying drop down to the paved alleyway far below.
"Are you insane? We'll never make that jump!"
"You have to trust me," Leo urged, taking her hand and squeezing it tightly. "Look at me. Focus on my voice, not the drop. On three."
Before she could protest further, the heavy steel door behind them groaned as the iron bolt began to bend under the guard's relentless assault.
With a sharp snap, the lock gave way, and the security guard burst out onto the rooftop with a menacing glare.
"Got you," the guard snarled, lunging forward with his arms outstretched to grab them.
"One! Two! Three!" Leo shouted, pulling the waitress forward as they leaped off the edge of the roof into the open air.
For a terrifying second, they were completely weightless, suspended above the dark, unforgiving city streets.
Then their boots slammed hard onto the gravel of the opposite roof, sending them tumbling over each other in a heap of dust and debris.
They scrambled behind a massive brick chimney, peering over the edge just in time to watch the security guard stop dead at the gap, cursing furiously.
"That was entirely too close," the waitress whispered, clutching her chest as her adrenaline slowly began to recede.
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Leo smiled faintly, pulling the flash drive safely from his pocket, but his expression suddenly shifted as his phone buzzed violently in his hand.
"It's from my sister," Leo muttered, reading the incoming text message aloud. "She says Victoria Vance just posted a massive public bounty for our arrest."
